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Cornell  University 

Library 

Exercises  at  the  Opening 
of  the  Library  Building 


THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 

OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  ANGELES 


KXERCISES 

AT  THE  OPENING  OF 

THE  LIBRARY  BUILDING 

CORNELL  UNIVERSITY 

OCTOBER  SEVENTH 
189I 


CORN  HI.L    TNI  VKRSITY 


KXERCISI'S  AT  TH1-;  OI'ENINC 


—  OF  — 


THE  LIBRARY  BUILDING 


CONTAINING 

A  DESCRIPTION   OF   THE    BUILDING ;    THE    ADDRESS   OF   THE   HON.    HENRY   W.    SAGE, 
PRESENTING   THE    BUILDING   AND   ITS  ENDOWMENT;   THE  ADDRESS  OF  EX- 
PRESIDENT   ANDREW   D.  WHITE,  PRESENTING  THE   WHITE   LIBRARY 
OF   HISTORY   AND   POLITICAL   SCIENCE  ;    THE    ADDRESSES    OF 
ACCEPTANCE    BY    PRESIDENT    ADAMS    AND    LIBRARIAN 
HARRIS,  TOGETHER   WITH    THE   ADDRESSES   OF 
PRESIDENT  D.  C,  OILMAN,  OF  JOHNS  HOP- 
KINS UNIVERSITY,  AND  PROFESSOR 
MOSES  COIT  TYLER. 


OCTOBBR    7,   1891 


ITHACA,   N.  Y. 

PUBLISHED   BY   THE   UNIVERSITY 

189I 


Primed  bii  Andrus  i  Church,  Ithaca.  N.  Y. 


Ctonlciils. 


.Sonnet, 7 

DESCRIPTroN    OK   THK    HlII.DINl",,                 II 

Introductory  Exickcisks, 25 

Presentation  Adiirkss  hv  Mr.  Sack,        ------  26 

AnnRHss  OK  Acck;i"Tanck  hv  rKEsiiu^NT  Adams, 33 

Presentation  Address  by  Ex-President  White, 34 

.\DDRESS  OF  Acceptance  hy  Librarian  Harris, 39 

Historical  Address  hy  President  Gii.man,            40 

Address  by  Proeessor  Moses  Coit  Tvi.i;h,          ------  5.1 

I5i:nediction,            5'> 


^■st  of  Illustrations. 


I'Al.l^. 


Exterior  View  ok  Library  Building,  ...        -        {Frontispiece). 

East  Entrance,              9 

Plan  of  Main  Floor, '2 

Plan  ok  Third  I'loor, 13 

Detail  ok  Stone  Work  over  Hast  Entrance, 14 

General  REAiuNr,  Room, 15 

CaTALOGUINC.    ROOJI,                 .-.--.---..  17 

The  President  White  Librakv  ok  History  and  Political  Science,       .  19 

Seminary'  Room  ok  .Vmerican  History, 21 

Seminary  Room  for  the  Ancient  Classics,             ------  22 

Periodical  Room, 23 

Seminary  Room  of  Political  and  Social  Science, 24 

Portrait  ok  Henry  Williams  Sage,            27 

Bronze  Medallion  of  Mrs.  Jennie  McC.raw-I'iske,  over  East  Entrance,  31 

Portrait  ok  .\ni)ki:\v  Dickson  White,      --------  3.S 


963049 


Great  thought  that  in  a  lofty  soul  fomid  place, 
A7td  now  fields  voice  in  miracle  of  stone  : 
Not  through  Cathedral  door  to  books  alone 
We  enter  here  ;  for  all  that  Good  tdti\  trace 
On  human  hearts  2ce  come ;   and,  keeping  pace 
With  high  endeavor,  struggle  to  ato7te 
For  loss  elsewhere  ;  for  surcease  from  the  moan 
Of  restlessness,  for  Peace  that  shall  efface 
All  littleness,  arid  lift  us  to  the  air 
Of  larger  -usefulness,  and   I  'ictory  won. 
Above  all  else  2ve  seek  withifi  thy  ken 
J'or  that  Great  Spirit,  luminous  and  rare. 
That  once  again  proclaims  7vhat  can  be  done 
By  those  who  live  to  serve  their  fellow-meii. 

—  Mary  M.  Adams. 


Jujsl  lliihiincc. 


Openinii;   of  the   Library   P)uil(Iin,^*. 


Qcscripfion. 

Tlic  Library  .stands  at  tlie  soutliwest  corner  of  tlie  as  yet  incomplete  quad- 
rang-lc  formed  by  tlie  main  University  bnildings.  Tlie  o^ronnd  here,  sloping  rap- 
idly to  the  south  and  west,  offered  some  advantages  which  have  been  turned  to 
good  account  by  the  architect.  Thus  the  reading  room,  which  is  entered  from 
the  ground-level  on  the  east  side  of  the  building,  is  on  the  level  of  the  fourth 
floor  of  the  west  stack  room  ;  and  as  the  stack  is  divided  into  seven  stories,  each 
seven  feet  high,  the  deliverv  desk  is  placed  at  the  vertical  middle  of  the  stack, 
which  thus  becomes  practicalh'  one  of  four  stories  instead  of  seven.  The  divi.s- 
ion  of  the  stack,  which  has  a  present  capacity  of  four  hundred  thou.sand  volumes, 
into  two  wings,  placed  at  right  angles  to  each  other,  while  providing  greater  op- 
portunities for  future  exteusiou,  also  brings  the  books  nearer  to  the  point  of  de- 
li\erv;  so  that  in  either  stack  the  most  distant  book  is  only  one  hundred  and 
twenty  feet  from  the  centre  of  the  delivery  desk,  and  there  are  no  shelves  beyond 
eas}-  reach  from  the  floor.  The  accompanying  plans  will  show  that  not  only  has 
the  first  great  requirement  of  ample  room  for  the  future  storage  of  books  with 
direct  and  easy  access  from  the  delivery  desk  been  completely  met,  but  the  no 
le.ss  important  conditions  of  successful  working,  such  as  economy  of  administra- 
tion, abundance  of  light,  good  ventilation,  and  genennis  provision  for  the  needs 
of  advanced  students  as  well  as  for  those  of  the  general  reader,  have  been  tlior- 
oughly  recognized  and  richly  fulfilled. 

The  extreme  diniciisinns  of  the  building  arc  one  hundred  and  seventy  feet  by 
(Uie  hundred  and  fifty-three  feet.  The  general  outlines  are  somewhat  in  the  form 
of  a  cross,  the  book  stacks,  I,  1,  occupying  the  southern  and  western  arms,  the 
reading  rooms.  A,  R,  the  eastern,  while  the  northern  provides  accommodation  for 
the  offices  of  adiuinistration,  the  White  Library,  and  seven  seminary  rooms.  It 
is  built  of  stone,  and  the  construction  is  fire-proof  throughout.  It  is  lighted  by 
electricity,  and  heated  by  steam  supplied  from  the  central  heating  station.  .A 
thorough  .system  of  artificial  ventilation  is  also  ])rovided  tor,  though  only  some 
of  the  principal  ventilating  shafts  are  shown  on  the  accompanying  plans,  where 
they  are  designated  by  the  letter  \'. 


12 


EXERCISES  A  T  THE  OPENING  OF  THE 


The  iimiii  entrance  is  in  the  northeast  angle,  and  over  the  front  doors  in  the 
vestibule  F,  on  a  gold  mosaic  back-ground,  is  a  beantifnl  bronze  medallion  of 
Mrs.  Jennie  McGraw-Fiske,  in  loving  memorv  of  whom,  as  is  recorded  on  a  tab- 
let near  by,  the  Library  was  bnilt  and  endowed  by  Henry  W.  Sage. 

The  entrance  hall,  C,  is  wainscoted  with  colored  marbles  and  is  lighted  by  a 
skylight,  the  position  of  which  is  shown  on  the  third-floor  plan.      On   the  right 


MAIN   FLOOR  -»- 


are  the  women's  cloak  room  IC,  with  a  se])arate  ontside  cnlrance,  llir  nKn's  cloak 
room  1),  and  a  checking  room  K,  for  umbrellas,  etc.  In  this  hall,  facing  tlic  en- 
trance, is  a  large  o])en   fireplace  willi  reces.ses  on  either  side  for  seats,  where  con- 


( '( 'A'.W-.y.  A    /  \7 1  AA'.SV  /■) •  /. /A' A'.  / A' ) " 


13 


versation  can  be  carried  on  freely  willioul  (listnrl)in,y;  readers.  Turninii^  to  tlie 
left,  a  short  flight  of  steps  leads  to  the  inner  entrance  hall,  C,  from  which  open 
the  general  reading  room  A,  the  periodical  reading  room  1>.  the  librarian's  room 
H,  and  the  catalogning  room  G.  The  reading  room  for  periodicals,  B,  is  about 
fifty  by  twenty-one  feet,  lighted  from  the  east  and  north  by  large  windows  eight 


— »  THIRD  FLOOR  *- 


feet  from  the  floor;  the  numlxM-  and  position  of  these  windows  are  shown  on  the 
main  floor  plan.  Beneath  them  runs  a  range  of  wall  Ijookcases  with  a  capacity 
for  six  thousand  seven  hundred  and  fifty  volumes.  On  the  tables  in  this  room 
are  displayed  the  current  numbers  of  the  most  important  magazines  and  reviews, 


14 


A-.vA7?c7.s-A\v  ./'/-  rifi-:  npF.x/.vc  of  riii-: 


wliile  the  older  numbers  and  the  less  frequently  used  periodicals  are  arranged  in 
binders  on  the  shelves  which  surround  the  room.  The  floor  of  this  room  and  ot 
the  general  reading  room  is  covered  with  corticine,  which  is  almost  as  noiseless 
as  carpet,  and  much  more  cleanly.  AH  the  woodwork  and  furniture  of  the  prin- 
cipal rooms  is  of  quartered  oak  highly  polished. 

The  sfeneral  readine  room  .A,  one  hundred  and  twentv-six  bv  sixtv-six  feet, 
will  provide  .seats  for  two  Innuhvd  and  twenty  readers,  allowing  to  each  a  desk 
two  feet  bv  two  feet  ten  inches.  This  niDin  is  lighted  partly  by  a  range  of  win- 
dows eight  feet  from  the  floor,  extending  around   the   soulli  and  east  sides  ot  the 


Detail  of  Stoiif   ll'mi-  iii-i-r  /■'ntl  I'liliaiice. 


room,  as  sIkjwu  on  the  main  floor  plan,  and  partly  by  a  liigber  range  of  clere- 
story windows,  the  position  and  nnniber  of  wliich  are  shown  on  tlic  tliinl-floor 
plan.  Hv  a  com])arison  of  these  two  ])lans  it  will  be  seen  that  the  reading  rcxun 
for  ])eriodicals  and  the  south  side  ot  tlie  gtneral  reading  room,  lorni,  as  it  were, 
two  low  aisles  adjoining  the  main  portion  ot  llie  general  reading  room,  which 
runs  up  to  a  much  greater  height,  thus  gi\  ing  space  for  the  long  range  of  clere- 
story windows.  In  the  .south  aisle  the  reading  tai)les  are  single,  and  fi-ce  toward 
the  delivery  desk,  as  shown  on  the  ])lan,  I)nt  in  the  main  portion  of  the  room, 
which  is  lighted  b\'  the  clere-slorv  windows,  the  tables  are  of  double  widtli,  willi  a 
longitiulinal  division,  and  run  lengthwise  of  the  inoni.      That  a  suftK-ient  sujtplv 


(3 


coRXi-:/./.  t  :\7 1  7-;a'.s7/-) •  /.//va'.  ia' y. 


17 


of  light  is  provided  is  evident  from  the  fact  that  the  floor  area  of  the  room  being 
six  thousand  six  hundred  and  twelve  square  feet,  the  glass  area  is  one  thousand 
and  t\vent3--five  square  feel.  Around  the  walls  of  the  room,  beneath  the  win- 
dows, are  bookcases  for  a  permanent  reference  library  of  eight  thousand  vol- 
umes within  rcacli  of  all  readers.  This  reference  librarv  has  been  selected  with 
the  aid  of  the  professors  in  tlic  several  de])artinents  of  studv,  and  is  supplement- 
ed by  the  addition,  from  term  to  term,  of  llie  l)ooks  reserved  b^'  professors  for  tem- 


C  at.ilogii  I'/i;   /w  Id  III. 


porary  reference,  or  collateral  reading  on  the  part  of  their  students.  The  delivery 
desk  is  at  th^  W23t  end  of  the  room,  which  opens  directly  into  the  stack  rooms  I, 
I.  In  front  of  the  delivery  desk  stand  the  cases  containing  the  card  catalogue. 
Tliis  part  of  the  room  is  chiefly  liglited  by  a  large  skylight,  the  position  of  which 
is  shown  by  the  dotted  lines  in  the  plan  of  the  third  story.  Additional  light,  too, 
is  thrown  on  the  di'livery  desk  from  llie  windows  in  the  angles  of  the  stacks. 


1 8  J-:\/{A'C/S/:S  .IT  THE  OPEXIKC.  OF  77 fE 

The  dimensions  of  the  west  stack,  exclusive  of  the  tliree  bays,  are  forty-se>-eil 
by  forty-four  feet,  and  its  book  capacity  is  two  liundrcd  and  fifty-four  tliousand 
volumes.  Tlie  south  stack,  forty-two  by  forty-four  feet,  is  one  story  less  in 
height  than  the  west  stack,  and  the  lower  stories  are  also  somewhat  encroached 
upon  by  the  reading  room ;  so  that  its  book  capacity  is  only  one  hundred  and 
fifty  ihousand  volumes.  In  these  stacks  the  window  openings  are  all  placed  be- 
tween the  ranges  of  bookcases ;  while  the  large  bays,  of  which  there  are  three  in 
the  west  and  two  in  the  .south  stacks,  furnish  excellent  reading  alcoves  for  special 
students.  In  the  angles  formed  by  llie  junction  of  the  book  stacks  with  tlie  read- 
ing room  are  staircases  and  book  lifts,  running  from  the  bottom  to  the  top  of  the 
stacks  :  on  the  plan  these  lifts  are  marked  L.  For  the  stacks  a  modification  of 
the  gas-pipe  construction,  which  has  been  found  so  satisfactory  in  the  Buffalo  Li- 
brary, has  been  adopted. 

Adjoining  the  reading  room  is  the  librarian's  room  H,  commanding  both  read- 
ing rooms  and  the  cataloguing  room,  being  thus  placed,  as  it  ought  to  be,  at  the 
very  centre  of  administration,  and  where  the  librarian  is  easily  accessible  to  stu- 
dents who  may  need  his  assistance.  Tlie  walls  of  this  room  are  for  the  most  part 
little  nu)re  than  glass  screens,  especially  on  tlic  west  and  north  sides,  so  that  an 
abundant  supplv  of  light  is  obtained  from  tlie  large  west  windows.  Tlie  cata- 
loguing room,  G.  is  forty-five  i)y  tweiily-two  feel,  willi  a  large  l)ay  twciil\-  b\- 
fifteen  feet,  and  is  divided  int  >  alcoves  l)y  ranges  of  bookcases  projecting  from 
the  east  wall,  containing  the  large  and  excellent  working  bibliographical  collec- 
tion In  the  great  bav  stands  the  cataloguers'  work-table,  hexagonal  in  shape,  and 
eight  feet  in  diameter;  in  the  centre  of  the  table  is  a  revolving  bookcase  contain- 
ing the  books  most  frequently  used  by  the  cataloguers.  Here  six  persons,  cacli 
with  a  desk  space  four  feet  in  length,  can  work  at  the  same  lime  williont  inter- 
ference, while  the  most  useful  reference  books  are  williiii  easy  reacli  of  all.  Here, 
too,  an  ami)le  supply  of  liglil  is  provided  by  large  windows  extending  to  the  ceil- 
ing. In  a  recess  on  the  east  side  of  this  room  is  tlie  b;)ok  lift  M,  coiiniiunicaling 
with  the  unpacking  room  in  ihe  basement,  which  is  also  reached  bv  the  slairwav 
directly  from  the  cataloguing  room. 

From  the  inner  entrance  hall  a  staircase  leads  to  the  Presideiil  Wliiu-  Histor- 
ical Library,  the  entrance  to  which  is  on  the  second  floor,  though  it  is  also  indi- 
cated on  the  third  floor  plan.  This  library  occupies  the  large  room  W,  w  Inch  is 
sixty-six  by  twenty-three  feet,  exclusive  of  the  large  bay,  and  extends  through 
two  stories  into  the  roof.  Here  the  b  )oks  are  arranged  somewhat  upon  the  alcove 
sj'.stem,  and  it  is  likely  to  remain  a  favorite  study  room  for  liistorical  students,  as 


'^ 


^ 


5 


^ 


CORNELL   US  1 1  LA'S/  lY  L  IliRAR  Y. 


21 


it  is  certainly  one  of  the  most  attractive  rooms  in  the  building.  In  the  open  cen- 
tral space  are  large  reading  tables,  and  in  each  of  the  twelve  wide  alcoves  is 
placed  a  small  stud}-  table  for  the  use  of  readers.  Direct  and  ea.sy  access  is 
given,  by  the  staircase  at  the  southwest  corner,  to  the  general  reading  room  and 
to  the  west  stack,  and  doors  open  from  the  galleries  to  the  historical  seminary 
rooms.  With  the  galleries  as  now  arranged  it  has  a  book  capacitj'  of  fort)^  thou- 
sand  volumes,   which  can  be  increased  to   fift}'  thousand  if  necessary.     On  the 


Seminary  Room  for  A)ncrica7i  History. 


second  i!oor,  adjoining  the  White  Library  on  the  east,  is  a  single  seminary  room 
R,  shown  on  the  plan  in  a  detached  position,  but  really  situated  immediately  be- 
low the  room  marked  P.  This  room  has  been  assigned  to  the  Sage  School  of 
Philosophy,  and  contains  a  select  philosophical  library  for  the  use  of  advanced 
.students. 

On  the  third  floor  of  the  north  wing,  opening  from  the  central  hall,  are  the 
Seminary  rooms  devoted  to  European  History,  P,  and  American  History,  N,  and 


22 


/•:.\7iA'c/s/js  AT  /'///■:  (>/'j-:.\7.\(,  <>/■'  the 


the  editorial  room  of  the  Philosophical  Review,  published  under  tlie  auspices  of 
the  University.  From  these  two  seminar\-  rooms  doors  open  directly  into  the 
alcoves  of  the  White  Historical  Library,  and  each  contains  a  good  workiug  col- 
lection of  books  for  semiuarj'  purposes.  For  example,  that  in  the  American 
History  room  comprises  complete  sets  of  the  Congressional  Annals,  Debates,  and 
Record,  the  Executive  Journals  of  the  Senate,  the  American  Archives  and  State 
Papers,  the  U.  S.  Statutes,  the  collection  of  Colonial  and  State  Laws,  and  Colonial 


Seminary  Kooni  for  the  Ancient  C'/a.tsirs. 


Records,  tlic  standard  liistories  of  tlic  United  States,  the  collected  writings  of 
Wasliingtcm,  Franklin,  Hamilton,  and  otlur  leading  statesmen;  and  sucli  oilier 
l>ooks  as  may  be  needed  from  lime  to  time  bv  students  at  work  on  special 
subjects. 

Returning  to  the  entrance  hall  C,  on  the  main  floor,  a  staircase  leads  to  the 
ba.sement ;  here  on  the  west  side  of  the  building,  entirely  above  ground,  are 
three  handsome  rooms,  occupying  the  space  direeth-  beneath  the  librarian's  room 


n  )A'.\/:7. 1.    I  :\7  I  AA'.S/ 7  }    /. //.'A'.  /  A'  > 


23 


and  the  catalogiiiiiij  nxiiii,  all  well  lighted  and  ventilated,  and  conininnicating 
witli  each  other.  Of  these  rooms  one  is  assigned  to  the  English  seminary,  one 
to  tlie  Greek  and  Latin  seminaries,  and  one  to  the  French  and  German  semina- 
ries. Here,  too,  are  collections  of  books  for  the  use  of  seminar)'  students;  thus 
the  Greek  and  Latin  room,  wliicli  is  shown  in  tlie  accom])anving  photograph, 
contains  a  carefully  selected  reference  lihrarv  for  the  study  of  classical  litera- 
ture, and  complete  sets  of  the  ])rincipal  ])hil()l()gical  journals  and  transactions. 


/\rio:ii<-a!  A'dohi. 


Beneath  the  periodical  room  B,  is  a  !arge  rooui,  lighted  by  high  windows  on 
the  north  and  cast,  corresponding  to  tho.se  shown  in  B.  This  room  has  been 
assigned  to  the  seminaries  in  Political  Economy  and  Social  Institutions.  On  its 
shelves  is  a  rapidlj-  growing  collection  of  blue-books,  .sets  of  economic  and  statis- 
tical journals,  reports  of  boards  of  trade  and  similar  bodies,  and  an  important 
collection  of  municipal  documents  of  American  cities. 


24 


j:.\/:Rcrs/:s  at  rirr.  opf..\i\'G  or  the 


In  all  the  seminary  rooms  the  tables  are  fitted  with  lock  drawers  for  the  con- 
venience of  members  of  the  seminaries,  and  from  each  room  direct  communica- 
tion can  be  had  with  the  delivery  desk  by  means  of  speaking  tubes.  For 
advanced  students  these  rooms  offer  unsurpassed  facilities  for  the  successful 
prosecution  of  independent  research,  with  full  command  of  all  the  resources  of 
the  University  Library. 

Beneath  the  cloak  rooms  D  and  E  is  the  unpacking  room,  with  an  outside 
entrance  for  the  reception  of  books,  communicating  dirccth-  with  the  cataloguing 


Seminary  Room  of  Jhlilital  and  Social  Scieiuf. 


Tlu 


room  b}'  the  lift  M,  and  the  staircase  as  shown  on  tlic  ])lan. 
portion  of  the  ba.sement,  beneath  the  reading  room  .\,  is  fitted  u])  as  a  lecture 
room  or  hall,  and  contains  seats  for  an  audience  of  niiu-  liuudred.  It  is  lighted 
by  windows  on  tlie  .south  and  east  sides  corresj^onding  to  those  in  the  general 
reading  room  A.  Tliere  are  two  main  eulrances  to  this  hall  (not  shown  upon 
the  plan),  one  on  the  east,  the  other  on  the  soutli  front  of  the  liuilding,  and  access 


COA'.V/':/./.    /A//  AA'.S// )•  /.//.'A'. /A')'.  2.S 

can  be  had  also  from  the  general  entrance  hall,  through  the  basement.  In  the 
tower,  which  forms  a  very  conspicuous  feature  of  the  building,  is  placed  a  cliinie 
of  bells  presented  at  the  opening  of  the  University'  by  Mrs.  Fiske,  and  also  the 
University  clock.  The  entrance  to  the  tower,  being  in  the  basement,  story  is  not 
shown  iin  the  ]ilan.  ( )ne  of  llie  series  of  small  tower  rooms  is  used  as  janitor's 
quarters,  and  llie  others,  having  been  fitted  uj)  with  shelves,  serve  as  storage 
rooms  for  documents,  records,  etc. 

It  will  be  seen  from  the  figures  whicli  have  been  given  as  to  the  book  capaci- 
tv  of  tlie  stacks,  reading  rooms,  etc.,  that  the  building  will  provide  storage  for  at 
least  475,000  volumes,  or  nearly  four  times  the  present  extent  of  the  librarj", 
with  facilities  for  almost  indefinite  extension  of  the  book-stacks  in  the  future. 


Introdtictorg  iTxerciscs. 

The  formal  gift  of  the  Library  Building  and  its  endowment  was  made  by  the 
Hon.  Henry  W.  Sage,  at  a  meeting  held  in  the  Librarj'  Lecture  Room,  at  2:30 
o'clock  on  the  7th  of  October,  189 1.  The  room,  seating  about  one  thousand, 
was  comfortably  filled  with  invited  guests.  On  the  stage  was  the  Chairman  of 
the  Board  of  Trustees,  the  President  of  the  University,  and  the  several  speakers 
of  the  dav.      The  following  was  the  order  of   exercises  : 

Music,  ....       Ithaca  Quartette. 

Prayer,  .  .         Rev.  Charles  M    Tyler. 

Music,  ....       Ithaca  yuartette. 

Presentatiou  of  the  Library  Buihlin.i;  and  of  the  Ivnilowincnt  of  the  Lil)rary, 

Hon.  Henry  W.  Sage. 
Acceptance  of  the  Ihiihhni;'  and   ICndownient  in  l)ehalf  of  the  l^niversity. 

President  Charles  K.  Adams. 
Presentation  of  the  President  White  l,i1>iary  of  History  and  Political  Science, 

Hon.  Andrew  D.  White.  I.I,  D 
Acceptance  of  the  President  White  Library  in  helialf  of  the  l"niversit\-, 

Mr.  George  \V.  Harris,  Librarian. 

Address,  .  President  Daniel  H,  (lilnian,  LL.I)  ,  of  Johns  Hopkins  University. 

Address,  .....  Hon.  Stewart  L.  Woodford. 

Address,         .....  Professor  Moses  Coit  Tyler,  LL.  I). 

Music,  ....        Ithaca  Quartette. 

Benediction,  Rev.  Charles  M.  Tyler. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  exercises  the  President  called  attention  to  the  fact 
that  it  was  twenty-four  years  that  very  day  since  the  doors  of  the  University 
were  first  thrown  open  to  the  student  world.  In  less  than  a  quarter  of  a  century 
the  beautiful  slopes  of  this  hill-side   had  been  converted   from  barren  pasture- 


26  /:.\'/:/^C/S/:S  A  T  THE  OJy-:NIN(!  OF  THE 

land  into  the  thriving  abode  of  an  important  seat  of  learning.  Bnilding  after 
bnilding  had  arisen  to  testify  to  the  demands  of  the  public  and  the  prosperity  of 
the  University.  To-day,  he  said,  we  come  together  with  glad  hearts  to  cele- 
brate the  completion  of  what  mnst  for  all  time  be  the  most  important  struct- 
ure on  these  grounds. 

After  music  by  the  Ithaca  Quartette,  the  Rev.  Professor  Charles  M.  Tyler 
offered  the  following 

PR.WKR. 

O  God,  our  Father,  whose  wisdom  and  power  and  mercy  are  from  everlasting,  it  is  fitting 
that  in  the  small  and  great  transactions  of  life,  we  confess  our  need  of  thine  assistance.  Encir- 
cled by  thy  Providence,  and  liorne  on  the  currents  of  thine  infinite  purjiose,  we  can  do  nothing 
without  thy  permission  ;  certainly  cannot  defeat  thy  will.  What  we  shall  this  day  accomplish 
will  launch  an  influence  to  be  felt  for  many  generations. 

We  thank  Thee  for  the  gift  to  us  and  to  the  world  of  this  noble  edifice,  founded  and  reared 
by  the  sacrifices  of  one,  to  whose  heart  are  always  dear  the  honor  of  God  and  the  welfare  of  hu- 
manity. Accept  our  gratitude  for  the  immense  blessing  which,  through  his  benevolence  and 
toil,  thou  dost  confer  upon  us.  May  this  majestic  spire  and  massive  walls  stand  for  centuries 
unshaken  ;  may  all  the  wisdom  of  the  past  atid  teachings  of  the  present  time,  garnered  here  with 
pious  care,  never  l)e  jnit  to  ignoble  use.  We  stand  here  to-day  before  the  destinies  which  await 
us.  The  curtain  which,  with  its  invisible  folds,  hides  the  future  from  us,  sways  as  if  about  to 
part  and  reveal  the  grandeurs  of  Eternity  to  us  all.  He  who  to-day  by  this  gift  is  so  deserving 
of  our  gratitude,  will  soon  with  us  all  pass  beyond  the  stars,  and  our  duties  and  .solicitudes  be 
a.ssunied  h\  those  who  shall  ri.se  up  after  us.  May  an  enduring  gratitude  spring  up  in  the 
hearts  of  all  who  in  the  centuries  to  come  shall  throng  to  these  halls  of  learning  for  the  bless- 
ings and  privileges  this  day  secured  by  a  noble  benefaction. 

Thnjugh  Jesus  Christ,  our  Lord.     Amen. 

The  Ithaca  Quartette  then  sang  "  Alma  Mater,"  after  wliicli  the  President 
introduced  Mr.  Sage  as  the  one  whom,  above  all  Dtliers,  the  audience  had  assem- 
bled to  hear. 


Prcsciitntion  A66rcss  bu  IWv.  Snnc. 

Gentlemen  of  the  Board  of  Trustees, 

Mr.  President,  diid  Ladies  and  Coiilrvioi  : 

Among  llic  iiKisi  important  gifts  to  Conull  I'liiversity  after  its  original  en- 
dowment by  Ezra  Cornell,  was  the  stone  Library  building,  the  corner  stone  of 
which  was  laid  in  1S69,  and  the  completed  house  presented  and  delivered  to  us  in 
the  fall  of  1872  by  John  McGraw.  The  chime  of  bells  was  presented  h\  Jennie 
McGraw,  and  from  thai  lime  to  this  the  home  of  our  libnirv  has  lieen  there. 

Our  equii)ment  in  books  was  small.  .At  the  beginning  in  1S69  we  had  iS,ooo 
volumes.     Two  years  later,  in  June,  i<S-i,  27,500  volumes.      From  that  time  on 


Henry   Williams  Sage. 


C()A'x/-:/j.  r.\/r/:h's/'j )■  jj/ih'.un:  29 

to  18S0  our  annual  appropriation  for  librarj'  was  but  about  $1,500;  since  then 
larger.  But  to  June,  1891,  our  total  increase  of  books,  by  gift  and  purchase,  has 
been  66,330  volumes,  and  these  added  to  the  18,000  we  had  twenty-two  )-ears 
since  make  the  present  number  84,330  volumes,  besides  the  lil^rary  presented  by 
our  late  honored  President,  numbering,  I  suppose,  about  30,000  volumes.  Of 
these  a  large  number  have  been  gifts.  From  our  own  government  and  tlie  .state 
at  least  4,000  volumes;  from  the  British  government  3,000  volumes;  from  Gold- 
win  Smith  over  3,000  volumes;  from  Kzra  ConK-ll,  .\ndrew  D.  \\'hite,  P^ugene 
Schuyler,  Willard  Fiske,  and  other  professors  of  Cornell  Universitv,  William 
Kelly,  S.J.  May,  and  others,  several  thousand  more.  Our  annual  increase  b)' 
purchase  has  averaged  about  1,400  volumes.  We  had  not  financial  power  to 
make  it  larger  until  a  very  recent  date.  Now,  when  we  consider  that  a  librar}-  is 
to  a  college  or  universitv  like  a  boiler  to  a  .steam  engine,  powder  to  artillery,  com- 
missarv  department  to  an  armv,  stomach  and  lungs  to  the  human  frame,  the 
verj-  source  of  vital  power  and  energy,  an  ever  present  deposit  of  the  best 
thoughts  of  the  best  men  for  the  use  of  the  learned  and  of  those  beginning  to 
learn,  we  can  understand  wliy  additions  to  such  reservoirs  of  power  are  hailed 
with  joy  b_v  ever}'  lover  of  moral  and  intellectual  progress. 

It  has  been  the  dream  of  the  founders  and  builders  of  Cornell  that  some  day 
we  should  possess  a  library  worthy  of  their  purposes  and  aspirations  and  of 
the  great  cause  they  were  trying  to  serve.  John  McGraw,  who  clearly  compre- 
hended our  wants,  at  one  time  intended  to  devote  to  them  a  large  portion  of  his 
estate.  But  his  purpo.se  changed.  He  died  in  Ma}-,  1S77,  leaving  to  his  only 
child  and  heir,  Jennie  IMcGraw,  substantially  all  his  fortune.  He  well  knew 
that  her  wishes  with  regard  to  Cornell  Library  were  his  own,  and  left  her  with 
liberty  and  power  to  do  as  she  pleased.  A  few  days  after  his  death,  she  made 
her  first  will,  giving  to  the  University  $500,000  and  all  her  residuar}-  estate. 
Later  on,  as  Mrs.  Jennie  McGraw-Fiske,  after  amply  providing  for  her  husband, 
her  relatives  and  her  friends,  and  many  noble  charities,  she  gave  by  will  to  the 
trustees  of  Cornell  University  forty  thousand  dollars  for  a  students'  hospital, 
fifty  thousand  for  a  fund  to  keep  in  repair  and  beautify  her  father's  library 
building,  two  hundred  thousand  and  all  her  residuary  estate  for  the  Library. 
This  fund,  had  it  been  permitted  to  accumulate  without  conflict  or  legal  costs, 
would  have  amounted  to-day  to  more  than  two  million  dollars,  and  have  given  us 
the  basis  for  a  library  unequalled  at  that  time  on  this  continent.  Our  largest 
hopes  seemed  to  have  been  fully  realized,  our  thankfulness  and  joy  were  literally 
boundless.  In  September,  1881,  this  pure  and  noble  woman  died.  Measured  by 
what  she  frird  to  do,  she  was  by  far  the  greatest  benefactor  Cornell  ever  had. 


30  EXERCISES  A  T  THE  OPENIXC,  OF  THE 

We  all  know  something  of  the  conflict  over  her  estate  since  she  died.  In 
1S90  the  final  decision  of  the  United  States  Supreme  Court,  holding  that  Cornell 
already  had  capital  in  excess  of  her  charter  limits  and  therefore  could  not  take 
or  hold  more,  swept  away  from  us  ever}'  dollar  of  lier  bequest.  Her  will  as  to 
gifts  made  to  us  was  wholly  invalid,  all  her  noble  purposes  were  defeated,  and 
Cornell's  hopes  for  a  Library  (supposed  to  have  been  well  founded)  dashed  to 
the  ground !  The  deep  depression  caused  by  the  result  to  our  friends  here  can 
only  be  comprehended  by  those  who,  with  ever}-  interest  of  Cornell  dear  to  their 
hearts,  felt  the  blow  most  keenly.  Our  late  President  was  completely  over- 
whelmed. He  has  often  said  lie  tliought  it  would  be  his  death  blow.  The 
friends  of  education  everywhere  have  deplored  it  as  a  great  calamity  ! 

In  lliis  connection,  1  dislike  to  speak  of  myself,  but  a  truthful  history  com- 
pels me  to  do  so.  John  McGraw  was  my  friend  for  more  than  forty  years. 
Jennie  was  my  friend  from  her  earh-  childhood.  \\'hcn  I  saw  that  her  purposes 
were  in  peril,  I  resolved  to  do  what  I  could  to  promote  and  repair  them  ;  and 
when  the  blow  came,  I  was  readj-  to  proceed  with  the  construction  of  this  house 
and  to  endow  it  with  $300,000,  the  income  to  be  used  only  for  the  purchase  of 
books.  I  deeply  regret  that  instead  of  $300,000  endowment,  I  cannot  nuikc  it 
equal  to  the  whole  sum  lost,  but  that  is  impossible,  and  to  tlie  extent  of  my  abil- 
ity consistent  with  other  duties,  I  have  done  wliat  I  can.  There  is  capacity  here 
for  about  490,000  volumes,  and  indefinite  extension  of  the  Librar\-  stack  rooms 
west  and  .south.  Should  our  endowment  fund  earn  five  per  cent,  or  $15,000  per 
year,  that  sum,  with  gifts  we  shall  doubtless  receive  as  in  the  past,  will  iucrease 
our  books  15,000  volumes  annually;  and  in  twenty-five  years  absorb  all  oui- 
present  capacity. 

h.  late  important  addition  to  the  building,  wilhdut  which  it  would  not  be 
complete,  is  a  bronze  medallion  of  Jennie  McGraw  o\cr  tlie  front  door  entrance, 
affecticmately  contributed  by  my  sons,  Dean  and  William  H.  Sage,  and  their 
wives,  who  were  her  friends.  It  is  the  producliou  of  Pxjston's  eniiuent  artist. 
Miss  .Anne  Wliitney,  and  a  renuirkable  likeness.  It  is  finished.  I  have  \-our 
treasurer's  receipt  for  $260,000  which  I  was  to  pay  for  the  buildiug,  aud 
$300,000  for  its  endowuieut. 

Jennie  McGraw  rests  with  her  father  in  yonder  chapel.  In  full  \iew  and 
overlooking  it  stands  and  will  stand  the  work  I  have  done,  representing  a  small 
part  only  of  that  she  tried  to  do,  but  could  not  !  I  present  all  to  the  Trustees  of 
Cornell  University,  through  you,  Mr.  President,  as  a  memorial  of  our  departed 
friends,  and  of  my  undying  loyalty  to  them  and  to  Cornell  University.  May 
God  bless  the  gift  and  its  u.ses,  to  all  who  in  future  years  shall  come  here  to 
teach  or  learn. 


Brojtse  Medallion  of  Mrs.  Jennie  MeGraw-l-'iske,  orei  the  Front  Entranee. 


( V )A'.\/-:LL   LA7 1  liKSJJ) ■  LllSRAR ) '.  33 


ACi6rcss  oi  Acccptnurc  bii  President  Adtiins. 

Mr.  Sagr: — 

In  behalf  of  the  University,  I  accept  of  this  numificcnt  gift;  and  in  the  name 
of  the  Board  of  Trustees,  in  the  name  of  this  vast  body  of  students,  in  the  name 
of  that  great  procession  of  seekers  after  knowledge  which  in  future  j^ears  shall 
come  with  eager  minds  and  glad  hearts  to  this  seat  of  learning,  in  the  name  of 
everj-  lover  of  knowledge,  I  extend  to  3'ou  most  heart}-  thanks. 

This  is  not  the  first  time  you  have  come  to  the  University  bearing  gifts. 
Early  in  the  histor}-  of  the  institution  you  erected  the  first  of  the  noble  buildings 
which  bear  3'our  name,  in  order  that  in  Cornell  University  women  might  "  for- 
ever be  as  broadly  educated  as  men."  A  little  later  you  built  the  Chapel,  to  the 
end  that  the  spiritual  as  well  as  the  intellectual  natures  of  our  students  might 
have  encouragement  and  sustenance.  Still  later,  in  order  that  what  Milton  so 
aptly  calls  "Divine  Philosophy,"  might  have  upon  these  grounds  a  congenial,  and, 
perhaps,  a  favorite  abiding  place,  you  endowed  the  school  that  has  alreadj^  taken 
so  prominent  and  useful  a  place  in  our  curriculum  of  studies.  And  now  you 
have  performed  the  crowning  act  of  3-c)ur  munificence  in  giving  to  the  University 
this  worth}-  storehouse  of  the  most  precious  thoughts  of  mankind. 

Nor  have  you  brought  buildings  alone.  A  distinguished  president  of  the  old- 
est college  in  the  countr}-  once  called  attention  to  the  fact  that  it  often  places 
upon  an  institution  an  embarrassing  annual  burden  to  accept  the  gift  of  a  build- 
ing that  is  not  endowed.  But  you  have  placed  us  under  no  such  embarrassment. 
The  care  of  Sage  College  forever  was  provided  for ;  Sage  Chapel  finds  its  pulpit 
filled  with  the  most  eminent  preachers  of  the  country  through  the  generous  pro- 
vision of  one  of  the  members  of  your  family ;  and  the  University  Library  now 
receives  a  fund  which  for  all  time  will  be  a  fountain  sending  forth  perennial 
streams  of  influence  for  the  lielp  of  humanity. 

How  completely  and  delightfully  this  work  of  your  hand  and  heart  will  per- 
form its  mission,  only  those  can  know  who  have  observed  the  development  of  its 
provisions  as  the}-  have  taken  shape  under  your  watchful  care.  The  service  of  a 
great  library  should  be  twofold.  It  should  bring  together  the  sources  of  infor- 
mation in  copious  abundance ;  and  it  should  provide  for  making  these  sources 
easily  accessible  to  every  searcher  after  truth.  The  one  is  here  accomplished  by 
the  magnitude  of  your  endowment;  the  other  by  the  skill  with  which  the  details 
of  the  building  have  been  arranged.     The  one  is  not  less  important  than  the 


34  JtXERCfSES  A  r  THE  OPEN  INC,  OE  TIfE 

other ;  for,  after  all,  the  very  liighest  service  a  librarj-  can  perform  is  to  make  so 
easy  and  attractive  the  companionship  of  books  that  it  will  abide  as  a  perpetual 
inspiration  and  an  everlasting  possession. 

I  cannot  close  this  part  of  my  pleasant  duty  to-day  without  congratulating 
}-ou,  that  with  so  large  a  measure  of  health  and  vigor  you  have  come  to  see  the 
completion  of  the  work. 

Often  have  I  heard  3-ou  sa}-  that  you  hoped  that  3'our  life  might  be  spared  to 
see  the  School  of  Philosophy  established  and  the  Library  Building  erected.  You 
have  sometimes  intimated  that  if  such  a  wish  should  be  granted,  \o\\  would  be 
completely  satisfied.  That  wish  has  been  gratified.  But  with  uo  such  wish  as 
that  shall  we  be  content.  Rather,  it  is  in  our  hearts  to  say  :  Ma}-  your  vigor 
and  3-our  counsels  be  spared  to  the  University ;  may  you  yet  have  mau^-,  many 
years  with  us  in  which  to  see  the  beneficent  fruits  of  your  labors,  and  may  all 
those  3-ears  be  vears  of  happiness  and  peace. 


prcsiMttntioti  ^iCircss  fan  cx-Prcsi6cnf  HJIiile. 

In  formally  transferring  to  Cornell  University  the  library  which  has  hereto- 
fore been  my  own,  it  seems  not  unfit  to  give  a  brief  sketch  of  its  origin,  growth 
and  purpose. 

Its  nucleus  was  a  little  book  which  I  now  hold  in  my  hand,  entitled 
•'Poems  of  the  Pleasures,"  consisting  of  "The  Pleasures  of  Imagination,"  by 
Akenside,  "  The  Pleasures  of  Memory,"  hy  Rogers,  "  The  Pleasures  of  Hope," 
b)'  Campbell,  "The  Pleasures  of  Friendship,"  by  McHenrv. 

This  little  volume,  picked  up  at  an  auction  sale  by  my  dear  and  venerated 
father  and  given  me  in  my  boyliood,  is  tlic  first  book  I  ever  looked  u]ion  with  a 
sense  of  ownership. 

The  first  noteworth}-  growth  of  the  librar}-  began  in  mv  college  days:  it 
was,  at  the  beginning,  mainly  literarj%  but  as  time  went  on  it  became  more  and 
more  a  collection  of  historical  works. 

A  student  life  of  nearly  three  years  in  Europe,  just  after  my  graduation, 
added  largely  to  it.  My  honored  friend,  the  President  of  Johns  Hopkins  Uni- 
versity, who  will  shortly  address  3'ou,  will  remember  well  how  in  our  xdnthful 
daj's  together  in  London,  Paris  and  elsewhere,  my  passion  for  book-lunUiug  was 
often  indulged  out  of  .season,  as  well  as  in  season,  and  sonulinies  stood  in  the 
way  of  what  .seemed  better  eniploj'ment. 

As  profes.sor  of  historv,  first  at  the  University  of  Michigan,  and  afterward  at 


Andrew  Dickson   While. 


COA'X/:/./.    I  M  I  7-.  A'.sy  /  ) '  /.//.'A'.  /  A' ) '  37 

Cornell,  the  need  of  more  and  more  historical  material,  both  for  mj-  classes  and 
myself,  was  constant!}-  forced  upon  me,  and  this  caused  the  collection  to  grow- 
steadily.  Many  journeys  in  our  own  country  and  eight  visits  to  Europe  added 
to  it :  the  study  of  each  new  historical  period  opened  up  new  necessities  as  to 
books,  and  to  secure  these,  during  more  than  thirtj-  years,  a  keen  hunt  has  been 
carried  on  in  book  shops,  new  and  old,  from  Quebec  to  St.  Augustine, —  from  St. 
Petersburg  to  Naples, —  from  Edinburgh  to  Athens, — from  Constantinople  to 
Cairo.  .All  four  (juarters  of  the  globe  have  tluis,  in  greater  or  less  degree,  been 
laid  under  contribution. 

But  it  would  be  gross  injustice  not  to  mention  here  with  honor  and  gratitude 
the  name  of  one  man  whose  agency  in  collecting  books  for  the  Library  has, 
during  these  ten  j^ears  past,  been  far  more  important  than  my  own  :  that  man  is 
my  friend,  Professor  George  Lincoln  Burr.  To  his  exhaustive  and  accurate 
knowledge,  excellent  judgment,  broad  view  of  the  scope  of  such  a  librarj-,  deep 
sense  of  its  true  purpose,  and  devotion  to  the  University,  is  due  far  more  than  to 
au}'  efforts  of  my  own  the  most  valuable  growth  of  this  collection.  He  too,  has 
ransacked  the  most  important  repositories  of  historical  treasures  throughout 
Europe,  and  has  given  to  the  collection  a  value  whicli  it  ])robably  never  would 
have  obtained  without  his  unselfish  labor. 

And  now,  it  may  be  asked,  what  was  the  formative  idea  in  this  work? 

The  impulse  which  caused  the  devotion  to  historical  studies  of  such  time  as 
was  left  me  from  administrative  and  other  cares  in  a  busy  life,  arose  from  the 
belief  that  the  main  means  of  instructing  thinking  men  for  the  future  must  be 
a  thoughtful  study  of  the  past.  This  idea,  as  it  struck  the  mind  of  an  ancient 
philo.sopher  and  poet,  is  imprinted  upon  the  book-plate  in.serted  in  many  of  the 
volumes,  in  these  words:  ""  Discipn/ns  fs/  pn'oris  pos/riior  d/rsy  ("The  day 
after  is  the  di.sciple  of  the  day  before."  I 

More  and  more  this  great  truth  has  l)een  borne  in  upon  me  ;  that  the  divine 
purpose  in  this  universe,  especially  in  human  history,  is  shown  in  a  process  of 
unfolding;  of  unrolling;  of  evolution.  Hence  it  is  that  this  library  is  not,  by 
any  means,  a  mere  mass  of  historical  narratives.  Many  as  there  are  of  these. 
they  are,  so  to  speak,  but  the  frames  containing  the  more  valuable  part  of  the 
collection  :  far  more  important  than  this  framing  is  the  filling  in  with  that 
material  which  in  and  b}-  itself  shows  tlie  making  of  history,  especially  in  its 
greatest  epochs. 

Of  this  material  ma}-  especially  be  named  that  relating  to  the  development 
of  man  and  institutions  in  prehistoric  periods  ; — in  Egypt ; — in  Antiquity  gener- 


,8  EXERC/SES  AT  THE  0/'E.\7X(J  OE  THE 

ally ; in  the  Middle  Ages ; — at  the  Reformation ; — the  Revival  of  Learning  ; — the 

Connter  Reformation  ;— the  Thirty  Years  War; — the  French  Revolntion  ; — the 
Eno-lish  Commonwealth  Period; — and  the  American  Civil  War.  Besides  these, 
collections  have  been  made  showing  some  of  the  most  instrnctive  strnggles  of 
civilization  with  barbarism  ;  of  light  with  darkness ;  and  among  these  may  be 
mentioned  the  strnggle  of  divinely  illnmined  thonght  against  Witch-craft,  against 
cruel  systems  of  Penal  Law  and  Procedure,  against  Slavery,  against  barbarous 
views  of  International  Law. 

The  growth  of  Art  as  an  important  factor  in  civilization  is  also  represented 
in  the  collection,  and  although  a  great  share  of  this  part  is  intrusted  to  the  Col- 
leo-e  of  Architecture,  much  in  other  fields  of  Art  is  left  in  this  building. 

Historical  progress  in  various  industries.  Industrial  Art  and  the  various  .sci- 
ences has  also  been  kept  in  mind  and  is  largeh-  represented. 

The  development  of  Religion  ever  toward  higher  forms,  ideals,  and  results  has 
also  been  kept  constantly  in  mind.  This  part  of  the  collection  has  been  made, 
not  in  skepticism,  but  in  faitli ; — fiiith  in  a  divine  evolution  of  the  universe,  work- 
ing, so  far  as  man's  highest  interests  are  concerned,  through  various  forms  of 
religion  ever  toward  a  more  noble  development  of  humanity. 

And  now  a  practical  word  as  to  the  accumulation  of  such  collections.  I  hope 
that  there  are  some  before  me  who  will  hereafter  have  the  means  and  the  wish 
to  taste  the  pleasure  and  enjoy  the  profit  of  collecting  good  books.  Such  pleas- 
ure and  such  profit  are  among  the  best  things  in  human  life.  I  can  liardly 
imagine  that  an}-  form  of  sport  can  give  keener  enjoyuKnl  tlian  l)ook-hunting. 
It  is  not  surprising  that  many  have  found  pleasure  in  it,  but  what  is  surprising 
to  me  is  that  anj'  man  who  has  ever  made  a  reall}-  fine  collection  of  books,  pic- 
tures or  valuable  material  of  aiu-  sort,  should  be  willing  to  liave  it  sold  and 
dispersed  after  he  has  ceased  to  use  it. 

Let  me  remind  an\-  now  Ix-fore  me  who  shall  hereafter  make  collections  of 
works  on  any  worthy  subject,  tliat  the  Ijuilding  we  open  here  to-day,  due  to  the 
loving  purpo.se  of  a  devoted  woman  and  the  heroic  determination  of  a  noble  man, 
is  one  of  the  places  in  which  collections  of  any  sort  can  best  be  kept  together  for 
the  highest  profit  and  purest  pleasure  of  future  generations  of  American  scholars. 

In  tlie  old  Abbey  Library  of  St.  Gall,  I  once  turned  over  books  that  had  been 
placed  there  with  faith  and  loving  care  over  a  tliousand  years  ago ;  and  we  may 
well  hope  that  these  books,  placed  here  to-day,  and  those  which  shall  be  added 
to  them  by  the  splendid  endowment  given  by  him  wlio  established  this  Iniilding 
and  by  others  who  shall  emulate  his  example,  may  go  on  enlightening  and  u])- 
lifting  generation  after  generation  for  centuries  to  come. 


CORNELL   IJNI\-LRSI I  Y  LlliKAKY.  39 

And  here  I  may  not  omit  an  expression  of  tlie  feeling  which  must  be  in  all 
our  hearts  ;  the  feeling  of  deep  gratitude  to  Jennie  McGraw-Fiske,  and  to  her 
friend,  Henry  Williams  Sage.  Others  will  doubtless  speak  more  full}-  of  our 
indebtedness  to  them,  but  none  can  feel  it  more  deeply  than  myself.  Apart 
from  the  gratitude  which  springs  from  a  deep  attachment  to  tlie  University,  I 
have  a  profound  personal  feeling  of  thankfulness  to  the  man  who  has  provided 
so  perfect  and  so  beautiful  a  place  for  the  Library  which  it  has  been  one  of  the 
pleasures  of  my  life  to  accumulate. 

Nor  should  the  architect  be  forgotten.  We  may  well  take  especial  pride  in 
the  fact  that  this  building  embodies  the  plans  of  a  son  of  Cornell.  It  is  indeed, 
a  marvel  of  good  planning,  in  which  fitness  is  wedded  to  beauty.  Long  ma}-  it 
stand  as  a  source  of  strength  to  future  generations. 

And  now  I  commit  these  books  to  the  keeping  of  the  University  formally,  as 
I  have  already  done  legally.  May  they  and  the  additions  made  to  them  prove  a 
source  of  inspiration  to  generation  after  generation.  May  higher  thought  and 
better  work  ever  blossom  o\\\.  of  what  is  to-da}-  planted.  May  all  such  thought 
and  work  serv^e  to  develope  a  civilization  which  shall  be  more  and  more  worthy 
of  the  opportunities  with  which  God  has  bles.sed  our  beloved  country. 


JVCidrcss  of  Accoptnucc  faij  ^tifararinii  Harris. 

Mr.  President^  and  Ladies  and  Gentlemen  : 

I  rejoice  that  there  has  fallen  to  my  lot  to-day  the  pleasant  duty  of  accepting, 
in  behalf  of  the  University,  the  custody  of  this  valuable  collection  of  books 
which  you,  sir,  have  so  generously  presented,  and  I  wish  that  I  could  fitlj-  ex- 
press the  gratification  we  all  must  feel  in  knowing  that  its  treasures,  whose  gath- 
ering has  been  for  so  many  3'ears  a  labor  of  love,  are  now  placed  beyond  the  risk 
of  dispersion, — that  sad  fate  of  so  many  a  noble  collection, — and  have  found  an 
abiding  home  in  our  University  Library. 

Our  University  Library,  though  a  well-selected  and  most  admirable  working 
library  for  the  ever3'-day  needs  of  university  instruction,  has  hitherto  been  very 
deficient  in  what  a  distinguished  librarian  has  well  called  the  antiquarian  ele- 
ment. Without  this  antiquarian  element,  which  includes  not  only  manu.scripts 
and  old  or  rare  books,  but  all  that  extensive  class  of  books  known  to  historians 
as  "Sources,"  no  library,  however  large  its  numbers,  can  hope  to  be  ranked 
among  great  libraries.  It  is  the  presence  of  this  antiquarian  element  that  causes 
a  library  to  become  the  resort  of  scholars  engaged  in  special  lines  of  research  ; 


40  EXERCISES  A  T  Till-:  OPENING  OE  THE 

and  not  only  does  it  act  as  a  magnet  to  draw  scholars  from  a  distance,  bnt  it  at- 
tracts as  well  the  libraries  and  collections  of  scholars.  Now,  it  is  precisel)^  this 
element  which  is  most  fully  represented  in  the  President  White  Library,  and 
adds  so  large!}-  not  alone  to  its  intrinsic  worth,  but  to  its  value  for  universit}-  pur- 
poses. It  is  therefore  with  peculiar  satisfaction  that  we  welcome  its  accession  to 
our  University  collection. 

Mr.  Sage,  \>y  his  princely  gift  of  tliis  noble  dwelling  and  its  endowment,  has 
laid  the  broad  and  firm  foundations  for  a  great  university  library;  you,  sir,  by 
the  gift  of  your  rich  historical  collection,  have  so  greatly  strengthened  our  libra- 
rj-  on  its  weakest  side,  that  we  ma}-  even  now  fairh^  claim  for  it  a  place  among 
the  great  libraries  of  our  land ;  it  remains  for  us,  b\-  wise  administration  of  its 
resources,  to  make  it,  as  I  trust  some  here  to-day  may  live  to  see  it,  one  of  the 
great  libraries  of  the  world. 

liistoricnl  ACliress  by  i).nnic(  C  if%\\\\\tixx,  X^.D., 

PRESIDENT  OF  JOHNS  HOPKINS  UNIVERSITY. 

There  are  da3-s  in  the  lives  of  iustitulions,  as  well  as  of  individuals,  when  we 
enter  the  realms  of  poetr}^  and  seem  to  be  walking  in  the  Elysian  Fields.  Such 
a  daj-  is  this.  As  I  went  this  morning  through  these  halls  where  silence  is  elo- 
quent, it  was  like  a  dream.  Such  arrangements  for  the  care  and  use  of  books 
are  ideal.  In  anv  building  it  is  rare  to  find  the  omnipresent  union  of  beaut}-  and 
utility,  which  your  gifted  architect  has  .secured  in  this  structure;  it  is  most  rare 
to  see  a  iibrarj'  where,  amid  ornaments  that  allure  and  inspire  the  scholar  with- 
out distracting  his  attention,  the  varied  needs  of  various  readers  are  adequatel}- 
supplicd.  Here,  as  in  many  other  libraries,  are  collected  the  priceless  books  of 
literature,  history,  philo.sophy,  .science,  architecture,  and  art,  from  the  Book  of 
the  Dead  on  papj'rus,  which  faces  us  at  the  threshold,  to  the  latest  records  of 
human  thought, — but  here,  as  in  few  other  places,  such  treasures  may  be  enjoyed 
with  abundant  light,  in  an  equable  temperature,  in  the  atnuisphere  of  repose,  with 
learned  and  ready  teachers  near  at  hand,  and  with  opportunities  to  enter  those 
glorified  cells  of  the  cloister  which  we  call  tlie  Seminaries  of  Knowledge.  In  the 
name  of  American  scholars  far  away,  I  join  witli  von,  ladies  and  gentlemen,  in 
thanking  your  great  benefactor,  Mr.  Sage,  in  thanking  his  generous  all}-,  Presi- 
dent White,  and  in  thanking  the  authorities  of  Cornell  Universitv  for  the  exam- 
ple that  is  here  set  for  American  colleges  to  follow. 

Such  arc  the  tlioughts  awakened  in  this  place  and  at  this  uionKiit,  but  I  am 


CORXEl.L   (  AY  /  V-.A'.S/  /  ) ■  /.//IK.  IK  Y.  4  I 

here  not  to  talk  of  j^our  own  treasures.  It  is  rather  my  privilege  to  bring  before 
you  the  thoughts  that  were  suggested  at  a  distance  by  a  knowledge  of  this 
remarkable  gift.  As  I  proceed  you  will  not  be  surprised  if  in  one  mood  I  am 
retrospective,  in  another  prospective,  in  both  circumspective. 

I  write  the  opening  lines  of  this  address  in  one  of  the  shrines  of  American 
education.  It  is  in  suggestive  Stratford,  of  Connecticut — the  library  of  Samuel 
Johnson,  first  president  of  the  first  college  established  in  llic  province  of  New 
York.  With  his  books  are  those  of  his  illustrious  son,  William  Samuel  John- 
son, second  president  of  the  .same  college,  now  called  Columbia.  Here  hang 
their  portraits  and  those  of  their  distinguished  kindred.  Here  are  original  let- 
ters received  from  famous  Englishmen  and  Americans  of  colonial  daj's.  The 
library'  is  "  stratified."  Each  owner  has  added  to  his  inheritance,  and  the  de- 
posits, like  fossils,  reveal  the  life-histories  of  several  generations.  Here,  for 
example,  is  a  cop}'  of  Viner's  Abridgment  of  English  Law,  brought  home  in  the 
saddle-bags  from  New  York,  volumes  after  volumes,  by  a  promising  youth  who 
was  destined  to  become  one  of  the  authors  of  the  Constitution  of  the  United 
States.  Here  are  two  folio  volumes  of  Johnson's  dictionary  sent  to  his  New 
England  correspondent  by  the  great  lexicographer,  unconscious  of  the  coming 
days  when  three  New  Englanders,  Webster,  Worcester,  and  Whitney,  would 
recast  and  enlarge  the  great  vocabulary. 

Every  book,  every  portrait,  every  paper  has  its  story.  But  none  are  so  sug- 
gestive to  me  as  those  of  Bishop  Berkeley.  I  take  down  his  own  writings,  I 
read  the  record  of  his  life  in  Newport,  and  the  narrative,  well  told  by  Dr. 
Beardsley,  of  the  intimate  relations  between  the  author  of  .\lciphron  and  his 
friend  in  Stratford,  and  I  am  reminded  that  when  the  disheartened  idealist  was 
about  to  return  to  the  old  world,  Samuel  Johnson  visited  him  at  Whitehall  and 
made  a  suggestion  which  soon  bore  fruit — ten-fold,  a  hundred-fold,  a  thousand- 
fold, who  shall  say  ?  He  proposed  to  Berkeley  to  send  some  books  to  the  college 
in  New  Haven,  and  by-and-by  they  came.  Rector  Clap  said  it  was  the  choicest 
collection  which  had  ever  been  imported  into  this  country  at  one  time.  It  gave 
dignity  at  once  to  the  institution  at  New  Haven.  It  brought  before  the  students 
and  instructors  perhaps  a  thousand  well  chosen  volumes,  many  of  them  folios, 
by  classical  authors,  theologians,  philosophers,  historians.  It  became  the  mag- 
net to  which  students  were  attracted.  Other  gifts  were  drawn  to  it,  and  now  a 
native  of  the  very  town  in  which  Johnson  was  born,*  has  provided  for  the  books 

*  Mr.  .S.  H.  Cliitleiuii-ii,  a  native  of  Guilford,  Conn. 


42  /f.v/r/?r/.vA'.v  ./•/■  THi-:  opf.xixg  of  thf. 

of  Berkele}',  and  for  all  subsequent  accessions,  a  building  which  is  remarkable 
for  dignity,  convenience,  and  the  beauty  of  adaptation. 

Berkelej-'s  gift  was  an  epoch  in  the  history  of  American  libraries,  but  it  was 
not  the  da^-spring,  for  long  before,  John  Harvard  had  bestowed  his  books  on  the 
collesre  that  bears  his  name.  The  founders  of  Yale  took  from  their  own  shelves 
the  books  which  constituted  the  original  propert}-  of  the  college.  A  little  later 
Jeremiah  Dummer  sent  to  Connecticut  man}'  valuable  works  contributed  by 
English  donors,  among  whom  were  Sir  Isaac  Newton  and  Sir  Richard  Steele. 
Nevertheless  the  collection  that  came  from  Bishop  Berkeley  was  so  large,  so 
timely,  and  so  choice,  and  moreover  was  given  so  cordially  by  a  Churchman  to 
Puritans,  that  it  is  right  for  us,  on  this  memorable  da}-,  to  pause  and  pay  our 
reverence  to  the  name  of  that  rare  man,  possessed  of  "  every  virtue  under 
heaven."  Has  not  the  spirit  of  Berkeley  remained  in  the  new  world  he  loved  so 
well  ?  Has  it  not  descended  upon  the  founder  of  this  library,  who  likewise 
believes  in  the  union  of  Religion  and  Learning,  and  who  does  what  he  can  for 
the  promotion  both  of  Knowledge  and  Faith  ? 

These  historical  allusions  may  be  carried  too  far,  yet  if  Bishop  Berkeley  is 
borne  in  mind.  Doctor  Franklin  must  not  be  forgotten,  for  he  was  engaged  in 
1 73 1,  the  vcar  when  Johnson  paid  a  parting  visit  to  Berkeley,  in  founding  a  libra- 
ry in  Philadelphia,  to  which,  some  years  later,  James  Logan  made  his  memorable 
additions.  The  examples  of  Berkeley  and  Franklin  are  an  inheritance  better 
than  great  riches.  Nothing  which  they  proposed  could  be  narrow,  or  provincial, 
or  .sectarian,  for  they  were  men  of  broad  views  as  well  as  of  generous  impulses. 
One  was  a  bishop,  one  a  statesman  ;  one  an  idealist,  one  thoroughly  practical : 
both  were  philosophers  and  philanthropists  who  deserve  to  be  remembered  in 
every  library  of  this  land. 

Even  with  the  aid  of  these  generous  sponsors,  the  infant  libraries  of  this 
country  grew  up  very  slowly.  -K  century  pas.sed  after  Berkeley's  gift  l)cfore  they 
reached  maturity.  It  was  not  until  1S31  thai  the  potent  influence  of  Anthony 
Panizzi  was  brought  to  bear  u])nn  the  arrangement  and  administration  of  the 
British  Museum.  I  quite  agree  with  the  learned  librarian  of  Cambridge,  who 
.said  to  me,  not  many  days  ago,  with  reference  to  the  wonderful  advances  of  the 
last  half  century  in  bibliothecal  management,  "  the  modern  impulse  is  due  to 
Paniz/.i."  This  great  man  was  more  than  a  public  fnnclionarv,  more  than  a  bib- 
liographer, more  tlian  an  antiquary,  more  than  the  keeper  of  the  printed  books. 
Other  foreigners  in  ICngland  have  won  renown,  like  Bunsen  in  diplomacv  and 
archaeology,  Max  Muller  in  philology,  Ro.setti  in  literature,  and  in  an\-  such  pui- 


COKXELI.   r.\l\  l-.RSI  I  Y  I.IIIRAIkV.  43 

suit  Panizzi  might  have  gained  distinction.  If  lie  chose  a  career  of  less  note,  he 
so  exalted  that  calling  b}-  his  learning,  wisdom,  administrative  power,  and  regard 
for  public  interest,  as  to  make  it  an  honor  to  belong  to  the  Librarian's  guild,  to 
the  school  of  Panizzi.  Three  centuries  hence  his  name  will  be  recalled  as 
Frenchmen  now  recall  the  name  of  Jacques  de  Thou,  the  learned  historian  who, 
three  centuries  ago,  was  ])laced  by  Henry  IV  over  the  library  of  the  king,  and 
transformed  it  into  the  national  lil)rary,  whicli  is  now  one  of  the  greatest  glories 
of  Paris  and  of  France. 

But  I  must  not  be  diverted  from  what  I  had  to  sa}'  in  respect  to  the  modern 
advancement  of  American  libraries.  When  Professor  Kingsley  went  to  Europe 
in  1845  to  buy  books  for  the  library  of  Yale,  that  collection  numbered  34,00x3 
volumes.  Harvard  was  better  off,  for  it  counted  61,000  volumes,  and  was  supple- 
mented b\-  the  neighboring  Athenaeum  in  Boston.  At  that  time  the  collections 
of  other  colleges  were  even  less  significant.  Any  one  who  is  curious  as  to  such 
statistics  maj-  find  them  carefully  arranged  in  the  American  Almanacs  of  the 
period  referred  to. 

Our  modern  era  begins  with  the  establishment  of  the  Boston  Public  Library, 
Anno  Bibliothecce  Bostonicnsis  condiUr.  Its  influence  upon  the  country  may  be 
compared  with  the  opening  of  the  Central  Park  in  New  York,  foremost  of  many 
public  pleasure-grounds  ;  with  the  iniilding  of  Trinity  Church  in  Boston,  the 
emanciption  of  American  architecture ;  and  with  the  foundation  of  Cornell  Uni- 
versit}-,  pioneer  in  many  college  improvements.  It  was  a  fortunate  misfortune 
that  removed  Professor  Charles  C.  Jewett  from  the  Smithsonian  Institution  and 
placed  him  at  the  head  of  the  Boston  Library.  He  was  not  more  learned  nor 
more  devoted  nor  more  wise  than  Dr.  Cogswell,  then  engaged  on  the  foundations 
of  the  Astor  Librarv  ;  he  was  not  more  sagacious  or  practical  than  Mr  Herrick 
of  New  Haven,  an  ingenious  master  of  details  ;  but  he  was  fcn'tunate  in  the 
environment  of  Boston.  Public  opinion  in  that  city  demanded  such  a  library  as 
Professor  Jewett  had  conceived,  free,  large,  well  catalogued,  adapted  at  once  to 
the  public  and  to  the  scholar,  dependent  i)artly  on  the  civic  chest,  partly  upon 
the  private  purse,  fitted  to  furnish  entertainment  and  pleasure  to  the  weary 
workman,  fitted  to  inspire  and  satisfy  the  most  gifted  genius.  The  Harvard 
Library  was  accessible  to  the  college,  and  the  Boston  .A.theuieum  to  its  share- 
holders, and  the  IMercantile  Library  to  its  subscribers ;  but  the  public  called  for 
something  larger,  freer,  better,  "  open  to  all,"  like  the  schools  of  which  Boston 
has  ever  been  proud.  Everett,  Ticknor,  and  many  more  of  those  whom  Webster 
called  "  the  solid  men  of  Boston,"  became  trustees  and  benefactors  of  the 
new  undertaking. 


44  /■;.VA'A'(;"/.s7-..s-  .//   /"///■;  (>/'A.\7.\v;  oi-  rill: 

The  spirit  of  this  library  did  not  depart  w  lien  the  spirit  of  Jewett  was  called 
upward.  Justin  Winsor  cai-ried  forward  iu  a  noble  wa}-  the  work  that  had  Ix-en 
so  well  begun,  and  his  colleagues  and  successors,  librarians  and  trustees,  have 
advanced  the  library  to  a  very  high  degree  of  perfection.  When  it  is  trans- 
planted, as  it  soon  will  be,  to  the  magnificent  building  on  the  Back  Baj',  near  to 
the  Museum  of  Fine  Arts,  the  Massachusetts  Institute  of  Technology,  the 
Museum  of  Natural  History,  and  the  Medical  School  of  Harvard  University,  the 
world  will  see  distinctl}'  what  an  American  city  can  do  in  the  course  of  thirty 
years,  for  the  delight,  the  instruction  the  elevation  and  the  cultivation  of  the 
people.  There  are  times  when  we  lament  with  good  reason  the  degenerac}-  of 
city  government,  and  grow  indignant  at  the  triumph  of  unworthy  men  and 
unworthy  measures ;  and  where  we  are  righteously  impatient  for  reforms  so 
needed  and  j^et  so  slow  to  come;  but  we  cannot  despair  of  the  Republic  if  we  re- 
call what  a  single  generation  of  nnited  citizens  has  accomplished  in  Boston,  or  if 
we  look  at  three  noble  foundations  in  and  near  the  Central  Park  of  New  York, 
or  if  we  turn  to  Chicago  coming  to  the  front  with  two  libraries,  richly  endowed, 
a  buoyant  university,  and  a  promi.sed  exhibition  of  the  progress  of  the  liberal 
arts  and  sciences. 

I  will  not  venture  to  say  which  of  the  new  library  buildings  of  this  country 
will  prove  to  be  the  best.  Each  may  be  best  in  its  own  place,  for  its  own  pur- 
poses. Some  of  the  less  famous  structures,  like  the  Rindge  Library  at  Cam- 
bridge, the  Buffalo  Public  Library,  the  Worcester  Public  Library,  are  doubtless 
as  good  as  the  greater  structures  in  New  York,  Boston,  New  Haven,  Baltimore, 
Washington,  Philadelphia,  Ann  Arbor,  Milwaukee  and  Chicago. 

In  lighting,  heating,  airing  and  shelving,  the  new  buildings  are  admirable; 
many  of  them  also,  in  exterior  aspect.  Copies  of  Greek  temples,  like  the  Rush 
Library  of  Philadelphia,  and  suggestions  of  Gothic  chapels,  like  Gore  Hall  and 
the  old  library  of  Yale  College  (which  were  built  half  a  century  ago),  are  no 
longer  in  demand — a  satisfactory  change,  due  in  part  to  the  able  architects  who 
have  been  engaged  during  the  last  ten  or  fifteen  years  in  library  construction, 
and  in  part  to  the  experienced  criticism  and  coun.sel  of  li1)rarians  like  Dr.  Poole. 
In  the  preparation  and  publication  of  catalogues  the  work  of  Jcwctt,  Ezra  Abbot, 
Poole,  Winsor,  Spofiford,  Cutter,  Uhler  and  others  has  left  but  little  room  for 
suggestions  or  improvements,  although  rumors  come  from  San  Francisco  that 
great  economies  are  still  in  prospect, — especially  for  printed  catalogue.  Facile 
administration  has  been  secured  by  numerous  convenient  and  inexpensive  devices, 
suggested  by  Dewey  and  his  collaborators.     The  i)r()mptness  with  which  any  book 


(Okw/:/./.  I  \Ji/:h'sn  )/.//!/■:. i/n\  45 

among  a  hundred  tliousaiul  ni;iv  Ik-  idtMUifR-d  and  summoned,  as  if  it  were  touched 
bj'  an  electric  wire,  is  an  unfailing  surprise  to  those  who  are  wont  to  spend  liours 
in  their  own  dens  looking  for  some  long-lost  friend,  and  an  unfailing  gratification 
to  cverj-  bus}'  student.  Mr.  Winsor  has  devised  the  mechanical  devices  by 
which  any  book  among  ten  millions  may  be  brought  to  the  table  where  it  is 
wanted  in  three  or  four  minutes,  and  it  is  reported  that  the  devices  will  be  intro- 
duced in  the  new  librarv  of  Congress.  The  time  during  wliich  public  libraries 
may  be  visited  has  been  greatly  extended.  Vacations  have  been  reduced  to  a 
mininuini.  Many  large  collections  are  opened  until  late  in  the  evening,  and 
with  the  spread  of  electric  lights,  like  those  of  Columbia  College,  the  usage  will 
grow.  In  the  building  where  we  are  assembled,  not  only  electric  lighting,  but 
also  the  automatic  regulation  of  the  temperature  has  been  introduced.  Some  are 
open  on  Snndav's,  harbingers  of  the  good  time  coming  when  on  the  daj-  conse- 
crated to  rest  and  quiet,  those  who  would  listen  to  the  great  thinkers  of  ancient 
and  modern  times  shall  not  be  debarred  from  the  halls  where  living  and  departed 
worthies  hold  silent  converse  with  enquiring  minds.  The  office  of  a  principal 
librarian  is  recognized  as  so  dignified  and  important  as  to  call  for  the  services  of 
scholars,  of  learning  varied  and  exact,  whose  skill  in  collecting  books  is  equalled 
by  their  skill  in  the  diffusion  of  knowledge.  Numerous  assistants  are  essential. 
The  art  of  index-making  has  been  greatly  developed  and  put  into  practice — 
thanks  partly  to  the  persistence  of  Dr.  Allibone,  who  enclosed  in  his  letters  to 
literary  men  exhortations  and  appeals,  and  partly  to  the  verj-  great  utility  of 
Poole's  Indexes  to  periodical  literature.  The  most  recent  illustration  of  this  art 
is  among  the  best,  an  index  (in  ninety  finely  printed  pages)  to  the  pro.se  writ- 
ings of  Lowell,  prepared  by  a  librarian  whose  name  I  will  not  pronounce  lest  I 
should  violate  his  confidence  or  offend  his  modesty.  Tlic  prompt  acquisition  of 
books,  especially  from  foreign  lands,  is  no  longer  a  luxury  like  tlie  importation 
of  spices  and  gems  ;  it  is  a  necessity  if  American  scliolars  are  to  keep  in  touch 
with  tlic  pulsations  of  humanity  All  this  requires  a  great  deal  of  money. 
Fortunately  rich  men  and  generous  are  not  wanting.  A  favorite  mode  of  be- 
stowing wealth  is  the  establishment  of  a  library.  Witness  the  noble  gifts  of 
the  Astors,  of  Bates,  Peabody,  Rush,  Lenox,  Newbury,  Crerar,  Chittenden,  and 
of  many  more.  Those  I  have  named  are  all  departed  founders.  Among  those 
who  are  living,  the  highest  meed  of  admiration  and  gratitude  is  due  to  Henry 
W.  Sage,  the  noble  benefactor  of  Cornell  University,  whose  magnificent  gifts  we 
celebrate  this  da}-. 

Yet  we  must  not  suppose  that  our  public  libraries  are  perfect.     There  is 


46  EXERCISES  A  T  THE  OPENIXC  OF  THE 

much  to  be  doue,  everywhere,  even  in  tliosc  which  arc  best  managed,  before  the 
ideal  of  Panizzi  is  reached,  which  he  once  expressed  in  some  such  language  as 
this:  I  would  have  a  public  library-  so  complete  that  a  scholar,  however  rich,  will 
find  it  a  more  convenient  working-place  than  his  own  study,  however  well  equipped. 

Printed  books — not  to  speak  of  newspapers,  handbills,  fl^Meaves  and  other 
ephemera — increase  so  fast  that  it  would  be  unreasonable,  if  it  were  possible,  to 
bring  them  all  under  one  roof.  Even  for  the  publications  of  a  single  countrj^  it 
may  be  enough  if  there  are  one  or  two  store-houses,  like  the  library  of  Congress, 
the  British  Museum,  the  National  Library  of  Paris,  and  the  like,  where  complete- 
ness is  the  aim  Among  other  libraries  some  principle  of  diflferentiation  must  be 
worked  out.     In  a  large  city  this  is  not  difficult. 

Let  me  give  \ou  an  example  from  the  city  of  Baltimore,  partly  because  I  am 
most  familiar  with  it,  partly  because  of  certain  unique  advantages  it  possesses. 
In  that  place  the  Peabodv  Librar}-  ma^-  be  found,  a  modern,  well  chosen,  well 
housed,  well  arranged,  well  catalogued  collection  of  more  than  one  hundred  thou- 
sand volumes,  the  books  of  which  (with  a  few  exceptions)  are  retained  within 
four  walls,  where  any  inquirer  may  find  them.  Not  far  away  is  the  library  of  the 
Johns  Hopkins  ITniversitv,  arranged  on  the  opposite  principle,  under  ten  roofs, 
and  in  even  more  compartments,  so  that  the  teachers  and  students  of  any  branch 
ma\- have  at  hand  in  tlie  seminary  or  laboratory  the  books  most  important  for  the 
prosecution  of  that  study.  The  Assyrian  texts  which  delight  one  group  of  .schol- 
ars do  not  embarrass  the  chemist,  whose  journals  do  not  weigh  down  the  shelves 
devoted  to  classical  literature.  Crelle's  Journal  of  Mathematics  is  precious  in 
the  sight  of  another  group  of  students,  to  whom  the  stor}-  of  Aucassin  and  Nic- 
colete  suggest  no  attractions.  Near  these  scholarly  foundations  is  a  free,  public 
and  popular  library',  the  gift  of  Enoch  Pratt,  with  five  distant  branches.  Most  of 
the  Pratt  books  are  for  circulation,  and  every  one  w  lio  wislies,  rich  or  poor,  mav 
take  home  his  volume  .Around  these  central  institutions  are  special  lil)raries, 
under  different  control,  for  law,  medicine,  and  theolog}-.  There  is  al.so  a  large 
historical  library  and  a  society  library,  the  New  Mercantile,  wlicre  llie  snliscrib- 
ers  have  free  access  to  the  book-shelves.  Tims  witliin  a  circle  wlu)se  radius  is  a 
third  of  a  mile,  over  three  hundred  thousand  books  are  accessible  to  any  student. 
Few  cities  in  this  country  supply  so  well  the  wants  of  everv  class.  The  princi- 
ple of  differentiation  works  admirabl}',  because  eacli  foundation  considers  the 
needs  of  its  own  clients,  and  supplies  them  as  far  as  possible,  and  all  are  thus 
satisfied. 

In  the  conduct  of  a  single  librar\- — the  only  one  of  a  jilace — the  same  princi- 


pie  may,  in  part  at  least,  be  made  eflRcient.  All  books  arc  not  of  equal  value, 
and  the  same  book  varies  in  value,  not  only  at  different  times,  but  also  in  differ- 
ent places.  A  volume  may  have  its  chronolojjical  and  geographical  value.  That 
which  is  precious  to-day  was  at  one  lime  valueless,  or  it  would  not  have  disap- 
peared like  the  fragments  of  tlic  Antiope  of  Euripides,  lately  found  by  Mr. 
Petrie,  in  a  mass  of  waste  paper.  Tlial  w  hicli  is  of  slight  value  to-day  may  be- 
come so  rare  as  to  be  priceless  four  centuries  lience,  as  are  now  the  original 
printed  letters  of  Columlms.  Books  tliat  a  single  writer  may  wish  to  consult 
but  once  in  a  lifetime,  though  as  worthless  as  brown  paper  to  all  but  liim,  maj'' 
be  to  him  inestimabk-.  Rooks  tliat  have  slumbered  for  man\'  decades  suddenly 
awake  from  their  letharg}-  and  become  living,  like  Rip  van  Winkle,  perhaps  at 
the  touch  of  a  discerning  critic  who  calls  them  from  the  tombs,  or  perhaps  at  the 
occurrence  of  some  unexpected  event  which  excites  the  public  curiositv,  as  the 
"  Partisan  Leader"  was  revivified  in  the  beginning  of  the  Civil  War.  The  tech- 
nical treatises,  the  nuggets  of  Americana,  the  first  editions  of  famous  authors, 
the  dissertations  of  Doctors  of  Philosopliv  have  their  value  when  in  place;  out 
of  place,  the}-  ma}'  be  like  the  straw  from  which  wheat  has  l)een  threshed.  It  is 
not  safe  for  a  librarian  to  destro}'  an}'  book,  lest  it  should  presently  be  in  demand. 
What  then  can  keep  the  shelves  from  encuml)raiice  ?  Onlv  constant  elimina- 
tion, convenient  storage,  frequent  rearrangement.  The  books  less  wanted 
must  be  stacked  away,  half  a  mile  away,  if  you  please,  and  the  books  most 
valued  must  be  brought  forward.  Constant  readjustments  are  essential  to 
the  healthy  vitality  of  a  library.  This  is  troublesome,  costly,  difficult.  But 
public  libraries  are  troublesome,  costly,  hard  to  administer.  As  in  a  garden, 
weed  the  flower-beds  everv  season  ;  but  remember  that  weeds  are  flowers  out  of 
place.  The  grass  which  is  welcomed  on  the  lawn  may  be  spurned  from  the 
rosary.  That  wliich  spoils  the  strawl)errv-patch  looks  well  upon  the  hedge-row. 
So  let  everv  library,  like  every  plantation,  be  suitably  divided;  here  grow  fruits, 
here  blossoms,  here  \egetables,  here  trees,  and  yes,  here  also  mushrooms.  But 
heed  the  cautions  of  "  My  Summer  in  a  Garden,"  and  beware  of  too  much  "  pus- 
ley."  A  library  is  valued  not  by  the  quantity  it  contains,  but  by  adaptation  to 
its  clientel  age.  "  I  would  as  soon  tell  you  how  many  tons  the  Astor  Library 
weighs,  as  how  many  volumes  it  contains,"  said  its  first  librarian,  the  learned 
Dr.  Cogsw-ell.  Twenty  thousand  volumes  well  chosen  and  well  arranged  are 
worth  more  than  ten  times  that  number  hurriedly  amassed  and  ill-assorted.  The 
principle  of  a  compositor's  case  in  a  ])rintiug-ofiice  directly  applies  to  a  library. 
That  which  is  constantlv  in  demand,  like  the  letters  r  and  <^  must  be  at  the  fin- 


48  EXERCISES  AT  77 fE  OPENING  OE  THE 

ger's  end;  that  which  is  rareh-  wanted,  like  a  caret,  or  some  other  unusual  mark 
of  punctuation,  may  be  placed  at  arm's  length. 

The  task  of  a  librarian  is  not  half  done  when  the  books  are  collected  and 
conveniently  arranged.  They  must  be  exposed,  exhibited,  set  forth  ;  that  is, 
they  must  be  brought  to  the  attention  of  those  who  resort  to  the  library,  even  if 
they  know  not  what  they  want.  Every  scholar,  every  author  of  a  great  book,  at 
least  of  ever}'  great  book  that  involves  research,  is  under  obligations  to  the  bibli- 
ographers. Look  at  the  prefaces  of  Prescott,  Sparks,  Palfrey,  and  many  other 
writers  in  the  neighborhood  of  Boston,  and  see  their  ackn()\\legments  to  Charles 
Folsom.  But  such  indebtedness  is  not  always  acknowledged.  I  suppose  that 
when  the  oracles  of  Apollo  were  revealed  at  Delphi,  the  priestesses  did  not 
always  receive  the  recognition  that  might  have  been  agreeable,  but  they  were 
satisfied  becau.se  the  Shrine  was  held  in  reverence.  The  more  it  became  a 
resort  for  the  wise  and  the  powerful,  the  more  the  guardians  were  pleased.  So 
modern  librarians,  like  ancient  prophets,  reveal  what  is  hidden  and  interpret 
what  is  obscure,  preferring  usefulness  to  fame.  What  is  true  of  advanced  schol- 
ars is  likewise  true  of  beginners.  Every  3'oung  person,  every  merchant's  clerk, 
ever}'  aspiring  mechanic,  every  college  student,  every  candidate  for  professional 
distinction,  needs  to  be  told  w  hal  books  to  read  and  what  to  eschew.  Capital 
guides  nia\'  indeed  be  found  in  print,  like  the  hand-book  of  historical  literature 
prepared  b\'  President  Adams,  like  the  guide  to  English  history  by  Gardiner  and 
Mullinger,  like  Sonnenschein,  Sargent  and  Whitelaw,  Acland,  and  other  kindred 
hand-books,  admirable  coun.sels  are  given  by  Frederick  Harrison  and  Sir  John 
Lubbock.  Still,  the  best  of  such  guides  are  not  like  personal  friends,  wise, 
friendl}'  and  sympathetic.  I  am  fond  of  quoting  to  young  men  a  remark  of 
Grant  Duff,  to  the  effect  that  if  we  would  read,  see  and  know  llic  I)est  that  the 
world  contains,  we  must  always  be  warned  against  the  second-best.  But  the  best 
for  one  reader  ma}-  be  worse  than  useless  for  another.  It  is  for  the  librarian  to 
make  the  personal  equation.  He  will  not  offer  Sordello  to  one  wlio  wants  an 
introduction  to  Browning,  for  he  will  remember  Carl^de's  sa\ing  that  his  wife 
read  the  volume  through  without  discovering  whether  Sordello  was  a  man,  a  city, 
or  a  book  ;  nor  will  he  give  Perlz's  Monumenta  to  the  beginner  in  German  his- 
tory ;  nor  Newton's  Principia  to  one  who  asks  for  a  simple  statement  of  the 
law  of  gravitation.  He  will  not  bring  out  the  Oxford  dictionarj-  to  a  reader  who 
is  interested  in  words  beginning  with  F,  nor  will  he  refer  to  the  re])orts  of  the 
British  Patent  Office  for  a  compact  account  of  the  steam-engine.  He  will  not 
suggest  RoUo  in   Europe  to  the  ])r<)spcctive  tourist   if  Badeker  is  within   reach, 


C  OKXliL  L   I  Nl  I  J:US/  TV  1. 1  UN.  \RY.  49 

nor  supply  a  Board  of  Agriculture-  with  tuL-lve  copies  of  Miss  Edgeworth  on 
Irish  Bulls.'''  I  might  uanie  librariaus  who  are  masters  of  the  art  of  adaptation  : 
born  to  be  teachers,  delighting  to  bring  the  right  book  to  the  right  person  at  the 
right  time.  There  are  two  towns  in  New  England  where  the  public  libraries,  not 
very  large  and  not  very  well  endowed,  are  centres  of  light  to  all  the  conimunitj-. 
Here  come  the  school-teachers  and  their  pupils,  the  preachers  and  the  editors,  the 
physicians  and  the  lawyers,  llie  iuNunlors  and  the  professors,  the  tired  and  sick 
seeking  refreshment,  the  strong  and  hearty  renewing  their  strength,  and  none 
are  .sent  hungrv  awa}-.  Each  is  sure  that  he  has  found  the  best  for  his  purpo.ses 
that  the  library  contains.  Worcester  owes  a  great  debt  to  Samuel  S.  Green  ; 
Providence,  to  W.  E.  Foster.  It  was  Green  who  said,  in  1876,  "there  are  few 
pleasures  comparable  to  that  of  associating  continually  with  curious  and  vigor- 
ous 3'oung  minds,  and  of  aiding  them  in  realizing  their  ideals."  I  have  known, 
on  the  other  hand,  libraries  w-here  a  book  off  the  shelves  was  regarded  as  a  book 
out  of  place,  where  the  librarians  were  indeed  the  keepers  of  the  books,  where 
ever}'  inquiry  for  a  rare  or  costly  volume  was  received  by  the  officer  in  charge 
with  as  much  reserve  as  if  his  private  cash-book  had  been  called  for.  The 
dictum  of  Justin  Winsor  is  worthy  to  be  placed  b}'  the  side  of  Panizzi's  dictum  ; 
"  A  book  is  never  so  useful  as  when  it  is  in  use." 

In  these  days  when  the  cry  for  university  extension  is  popular,  it  may  be  well 
to  consider  whether  the  influence  of  libraries  cannot  be  extended  by  arrange- 
ments which  will  increase  their  efficiency.  Suppose  it  to  be  understood  that  at 
certain  times  an  intelligent  and  well-read  person,  in  the  service  of  the  librar}-,  is 
free  from  all  other  duties  and  is  ready  to  give  counsel  about  books  to  all  who 
question  him.  Let  it  be  a  part  of  his  business  to  study  the  wants  of  those  who 
frequent  that  library.  Let  him  have  at  his  elbow  the  best  catalogues,  indexes, 
and  criticisms.  Let  him  be  trained  to  such  haliits  that  he  can  readily  find  what 
he  wants  in  a  librar}-,  even  when  for  tlie  first  time  his  attention  is  called  to  a  sub- 
ject. Let  him  be  of  a  kindly  disposition,  patient  with  the  uninformed,  ready  to 
catch  the  meaning  of  inquirers  who  have  only  imperfect  modes  of  indicating  their 
own  wants ;  let  his  sympathies  be  broad,  his  intellect  versatile,  his  knowledge 
comprehensive ;  he  will  do  as  much  for  the  cultivation  of  the  community  as  the 
.  editor  of  a  newspaper,  as  the  head  of  a  school,  as  the  pastor  of  a  church — perhaps 
I  might  say  as  much  as  all  three.  Such  persons  are  often  found  in  public  insti- 
tutions. They  ought  to  be  considered  as  indispensable  members  of  the  library 
staff,  the  ushers  of  good  books,  the  mediators  between  those  who  write  and  those 

*  See  Painzzi's  Life. 


50  EXERCISES  .IT  THE  OPEX/XG  OE  THE 

who  read.  In  these  reuKuks  1  Iiad  cliietly  in  luiiul  llic  ])()pul:ir  library.  In 
learned  libraries,  like  those  of  colleges  and  universities,  and  in  tliosc  so  richly 
endowed  that  they  are  attractive  to  learned  men,  tlic  principal  librarian  or  super- 
intendent should  be  a  man  of  wide  knowledge.  If  it  is  not  necessary  for  him  to 
know  as  many  languages  as  Mezzofanti,  he  should  at  least  command  Greek  and 
Latin,  French  and  German.  He  should  love  science  as  well  as  literature.  He 
should  survey  with  an  eagle's  eye  the  vast  fields  of  human  activity,  and  discern 
with  prophetic  instinct  what  books  will  soon  be  wanted.  He  should  watch  for 
opportunities  as  do  merchants,  to  purchase  that  wliich  rarely  comes  into  the  mar- 
ket. He  should  be  skillful  in  arranging  the  treasures  that  he  guards,  so  that 
they  will  be  most  helpful  and  suggestive  to  the  investigator.  The  librari- 
an's office  should  rank  willi  that  of  a  professor.  He  will  be  the  better  adminis- 
trator if  he  cultivates  his  own  special  l)ranch  of  study,  for  thus  he  will  have  a 
sympathetic  relation  with  other  investigators,  and  he  will  be  the  better  investi- 
gator if  he  is  also  a  teacher.  PCrndition  should  be  the  characteristic  of  his  mind; 
beneficence,  of  his  heart.  I  wish  it  were  the  established  custom  to  seek  out  such 
men  and  place  them  in  charge  of  our  libraries.  Some  such  already  hold  con- 
spicuous stations.  Their  names  are  familiar  to  all  the  scholars  of  the  laud.  But 
we  need  more  such  men.  The  profession  of  a  Librarian  should  be  distinctly  rec- 
ognized. Men  and  women  should  be  encouraged  to  enter  it,  should  be  trained  to 
discharge  its  duties,  and  should  be  rewarded,  promoted,  and  honored  in  propor- 
tion to  the  .services  thev  render.  The  American  Library  Association  is  an  im- 
portant agency  for  suggesting,  upholding,  and  diffusing  wise  views  upon  library 
management.     Its  purpo.ses  and  methods  deserve  wide  comme:idation. 

It  is  hardl}-  necessary  to  sa}^  that  one  of  the  functions  of  a  library  is  the  pre- 
servation of  the  past  experiences  of  our  race  ;   but  in  tliese  days,  when  the  latest 
intelligence  is  most  welcome,  and  is  secured  for  us,  at  enormous  outlays,  from 
every  part  of  the  world  b\-  llie  newspaper  press,  with  such  skill  and   pn)ni])lness 
as  former  generations  did   not  even   imagine,  it  is  well  to  be  reminded  by  great 
libraries  that  wisdom  did  not  begin  witli  tlie  Renaissance,  and  that  knowledge^ 
was  recorded  long  before  the  invention  of  printing.      Tiie  revi\al  of  learning  did 
indeed  infn.se  into  the  modern  world  a  love  of  the  study  of  anlicjuil\-,  wliich   has* 
been  again  revivified  during  the  last  few  years;  and  the  j)rogress  of  the  graphic' 
arts,  especially  ])hotography  and  typography,  has  cnaliled  the  scholar  to  read  the- 
exact  fac-similcs  of  records  which   were  long  buried  and   hidden,  and   which,  if 
l)rought  t«)  light  at  an  earlier  day,  miglit  have  been  neglected  as  inaccessible,  in- 
explicable, or   illegil;le.     Tlie  discovery   of  a  jiorlion  of  Aristotle's  Politics  has 


CORXELL   UNI  I  'A  A'.SV  /  } "  /.  /A'A'.  /  A' ) ',  5 1 

lately  excited  the  scholars  of  thu  world,  as  if  a  pot  of  gold  had  been  found  at  the 
foot  of  a  rainbow,  and  the  text  thereof  may  be  brought  before  a  class  by  Professor 
Wheeler  in  Ithaca  as  well  as  b}*  Mr.  Kenyon  in  London,  because  the  British 
Museum  has  given  to  the  world  an  accurate  reproduction  made  b}-  the  unerring 
style  of  Helios.  The  Teaching  of  the  Apostles,  one  of  the  earliest  books  of  po.st- 
apostolic  times,  presented  in  the  library  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre  at  Jerusalem,  has 
been  printed  with  photographic  Irutli  in  Haltimore.  A  professor  of  Haverford 
College  visited  the  convent  of  St.  Catherine  at  Mt.  Sinai,  long  after  Tischendorf, 
and  brought  away  a  transcript  of  a  Syriac  Aristides,  containing  a  distinct  allu- 
sion to  a  written  gospel,  which  Harnack  calls  a  brilliant  discovery.*  Fragments 
of  Greek  authors,  recently  found  upon  pap\-ri,  have  given  to  the  world  of  schol- 
ars, says  Professor  Jebb,  such  a  ripple  of  excitement  as  might  have  been  felt  on 
the  discovery  of  a  manuscript  in  the  days  of  Petrarch.  These  finds  are  not  mere 
curios.  Isolated,  they  might  be  insignificant ;  in  their  relations,  they  are  of 
great  importance.  It  is  the  nineteenth  century  that  has  restored  Egypt  to  her 
place  in  ancient  history,  by  the  interpretation  of  her  hieroglyphics  ;  that  has  ex- 
humed Assyrian  and  Babylonian  literature  and  translated  the  cuneiform  annals 
of  ancient  Mesopotamia  ;  that  has  revealed  the  site  of  Troy,  and  of  Tiryns,  older 
than  Troy  ;  that  has  explored  Phenicia  and  Carthage,  and  has  come  upon  signs, 
as  Mr.  Petrie  intimates,  that  a  European  civilization  little  indebted  to  Asiatic 
lands  may  have  arisen  before  2000,  B.  C. 

All  this  experience  great  libraries  perpetuate  for  our  instruction  and  delight. 
So  long  as  curiosity  dwells  in  the  mind  of  man — and  when  curiosity  dies  man 
will  be  but  a  beast  of  burden — so  long  will  he  enquire  into  the  origin  of  man,  his 
habits,  his  laws,  his  religions,  his  institutions,  his  failures,  his  endeavors.  Our 
libraries,  therefore,  gathering  up,  handing  down,  arranging,  interpreting  and 
making  public  the  lessons  of  the  past,  supply  one  of  the  most  constant  and  one 
of  the  noblest  demands  of  civilization.  It  is  not  necessary  to  determine  where 
the  functions  of  the  archaeologist  end  or  those  of  the  librarian  begin.  Both  are 
the  interpreters  of  human  experience,  the  conservators  of  human  records.  The 
fly-leaf,  the  pamphlet,  the  book,  the  photograpii,  the  palimpsest,  the  parchment, 
the  inscription  upon  marble  or  bronze,  the  coin,  the  medal,  the  papyrus,  and  the 
wedge-lettered  cylinder — these  are  the  journals,  the  annals,  the  centuries  of  hu- 
manity. Bring  them  together,  founders  of  libraries ;  interpret  them,  professors 
of  languages  ;  give  us  their  lessons,  teachers  of  history  ;  that  the  days  to  come 

*  For  this  allusion  ami  two  of  the  following,  see  the  .Address  of  Professor  Jebb,  as  President 

of  the  Society  for  Promotiii;;  Hellenic  Studies,  June,  iSgt. 


52  £.\7:/^c/s/:S  .//  /'///■:  (i/'/:a7.V(;  o/'  riir. 

ma}'  be  better  than  llie-  days  of  old,  that  the-  errors  of  sciL-iice,  of  politics  and  of 
religion  may  not  be  repeated,  that  coming  generations,  standing  on  the  shoulders 
of  their  forebears,  maj-  see  further  and  act  wiser  than  those  who  have  gone  be- 
fore. 

A  librarj',  however,  is  not  merely  a  magazine  or  storehouse.  It  is  rather  to 
be  likened  to  an  organism  which  has  life,  which  tends  to  self-preservation,  growth 
and  reproduction.  It  is  never  the  same,  not  because  its  elements  are  shaken  up 
like  the  beads  of  a  kaleidoscope,  but  because  they  grow  like  the  cells  of  a  honey- 
comb. Constant  readjustment  of  the  books  that  arc  in  demand  and  no  interfer- 
ence with  the  reader's  convenience  may  be  called  Lhe  librarian's  paradox.  The 
problem  was  solved  b}-  Panizzi,  on  a  great  scale,  when  the  new  rooms  of  the 
British  Museum  were  arranged ;  by  Uhler,  on  a  lesser  scale,  when  the  Peabody 
Institute  was  enlarged.  It  must  be  met  by  ever}'  librarian  who  tries  to  keep  in 
proximity  the  important  books  of  any  subject,  while  he  sees  inviting  accessions 
constantly  seeking  places, 

A  noble  library  is  a  noble  organ.  Its  value  depends  upon  the  player.  Not 
everybody  who  can  blow  the  fife  or  beat  the  drum  can  elicit  an  organ's  harmony. 
Not  everybody  who  enjoys  the  music  can  play  a  single  strain.  Not  every  one 
who  can  build  the  instrument,  or  who  understands  the  mysterious  mechanism  of 
keys  and  stops  and  pedals,  has  the  power  of  melodious  expression.  But  when  a 
master  sits  at  the  keyboard,  celestial  harmonies  are  heard  :  history,  philosophy, 
science,  poetry,  all  the  muses  hover  near. 

Inspiration  is  one  of  the  chief  functions  of  a  library.  In  these  days  of  rapid 
acquisitions,  quick  demand  for  the  latest  publications,  and  impatience  if  a  book 
cannot  at  once  be  produced,  our  libraries  are  in  danger  of  losing  one  of  their  mo.st 
precious  qualities — quiet  suggestiveness.  In  every  iMbliotheca  there  should  be 
places  of  repose  where  the  student  may  have  access  to  tlie  shelves,  and,  without 
revealing  to  any  other  liiinian  iiiiiid  the  operations  of  his  own,  may  take  down, 
at  his  own  will,  and  hold  for  a  minute  or  a  day  whatever  books  he  ])leases.  Car- 
lyle  was  refused  such  a  ])rivilege  at  the  British  Museum — and  what  a  blunder! 
Mark  Pattison  might  have  consoled  him  with  the  like  experience  of  Casaubon — 
scholarly  friend  of  Henry  IV  of  F^rance  and  of  James  I  of  England — who  was 
"perpetually  thwarted  in  his  natural  curiosity  to  explore  the  treasures  of  the* 
royal  library  in  Paris  by  the  morose  temper  of  the  custodian — too  ignorant  to 
u.se  the  library  himself,  too  jealous  to  allow  otiiers  to  use  it."  Of  Gosselin,  who 
thus  thwarted  Casaubon,  it  is  recorded  that  in  tlu-  imbecility  of  extreme  old  age 
he  still  clutched  his  treasures  with  desjK-rate  grip.* 

*  Piiltison's  Casiiu)>tiii. 


(VM'.Wf/./.    r.\7/7-.A',s7/)-  I  IlikWRY. 


53 


The  principal  librarian,  or  if  not  llic-  lihrarian  ilit-n  tlit-  trustees  of  every  large 
collection,  should  have  the  discretion  to  admit  to  the  shelves  those  who  are  quali- 
fied in  their  morals  as  well  as  in  their  understandings  to  enjoy  such  privileges. 
The  easy  access  of  the  public  to  twenty  or  thirty  thousand  volumes  like  those 
which  surround  the  walls  of  the  central  reading-room  of  the  British  Museum  is 
important,  but  it  is  likewise  important  that  men  like  Casaubon,  men  like  Carlyle, 
men  like  Macaulay,  slionld  l)e  welcome  to  the  very  penetralia.  Wherever  they 
go  the}-  will  bring  fortli  lioney. 

Repose  in  a  library  will  become  one  of  the  lost  illusions  of  tlie  scholar,  if  our 
librarians,  with  over-readiness  to  answer  the  enquiries  of  the  asker  of  "  twenty 
questions,"  are  not  even  more  alert  to  recognize  and  encourage  the  modest  unob- 
trusive lover  of  good  books.  The  leisure  reader  is  as  worthy  as  the  hurried 
caller.  He  is  more  likely  to  produce  the  fruits  of  quiet  reflection  and  accurate 
scholarship.  If  it  be  said  that  Lowell  is  one  of  the  last  great  writers  who  have 
given  distinction  to  Boston  during  the  middle  of  this  centurj-,  it  may  be  worth 
while  to  enquire  whether  the  gentle,  inspiring,  peaceful  influences  of  literary 
Quietism,  under  which  he  and  Emerson,  Longfellow,  Ticknor,  Hawthorne,  Mot- 
lej',  and  Prescott,  and  tlicir  kinsmen  of  the  pen  grew  up,  are  known  to  this  gen- 
eration, and  whether  in  our  cultivation  of  other  fine  arts  we  arc  not  forgetting 
the  noble  art  of  leisure.  Mr.  Lowell  is  right  in  saying  that  a  leisure  class  with- 
out a  definite  object  in  life  and  without  generous  aims  is  a  bane  rather  than  a 
blessing ;  but  it  is  the  writer  of  the  couplets  on  3'onder  bell  "  that  calls  as  fl}-  the 
irrevocable  hours,"   who  has  taught  in  his  life  the  uses  of  leisure,  and  in  his 

verse, 

— the  pleasures  of  retreat 
Safe  from  tlie  crowd  and  cloistered  from  tin- street. 

It  is  Lowell,  speaking  to  Curtis,  who  extols 

Calm  days  that  loiter  with  siiow-silenl  tread, 
Nor  break  \\\y  commune  with  tlie  undying  dead  ; 
Truants  of  Time,  to  morrow  like  to-day, 
That  come  unhid  and  claimless  glide  away. 

And  Lowell,  too,  who  wrote: 

I  hear  the  voice  as  of  a  mighty  wind 
From  all  heaven's  caverns  rushing  unconfined  ; 
"  I,  F'reedoni.  dwell  with  knowledge  ;   I  abide 
With  men  whom  dust  of  Faction  caiuiot  blind 
To  the  slow  tracings  t)f  the  liternal  Mind  ; 
With  men  by  culture  trained  and  fortified." 


54  EXERCISES  A  T  THE  OPEXING  OF  THE 

At  the  close  of  President  Gilnuin's  address,  tlit-  Hon.  Stewart  L.  Woodford 
spoke  briefly,  emphasizing  the  great  wisdom  shown  by  Mr.  Sage  in  doing  his 
work  of  benevolence  in  his  own  lifetime,  and  not  leaving  it  to  be  done  by  execn- 
tors  after  his  death.     The  remarks  of  Mr.  Woodford  were  followed  by  the 


ACiCtrcss  of  illoscs  (Coit  (Ttjler,  X?L.^., 

PROFESSOR  OF  AMERICAN   HISTORY. 

Mr.  President.,  Ladies  and  Gentlemen  : 

We  must  all  have  felt,  as  we  have  watched  this  noble  business  proceeding  to 
its  consummation  here  this  afternoon,  how  true  it  is  that  everj^  good  deed  that  is 
done  in  this  world  seems  to  bring  along  with  it  a  fine  spiritual  atmosphere  of  its 
own,  which  actuallj'  cheers,  and  strengthens,  and  makes  better,  even  those  of  us 
who  may  have  had  no  hand  in  the  doing  of  the  deed, — if  only  w^e  be  so  fortunate 
as  to  stand  near  enough  to  breathe  into  our  lungs  some  of  that  fine  air,  or  even 
to  feel  upon  our  cheeks  the  pressure  ot  those  breezy  currents  of  moral  energy 
which  the  good  deed  creates.  Sometimes  men  and  women  come  together  to  ded- 
icate a  building  like  this,  and  happily  by  and  by  the}-  go  away  finding  that  in  the 
dedication  of  the  building,  they  have  also  and  more  especially  dedicated  them- 
selves to  all  that  is  nol)lest  and  best  in  the  purposes  for  which  the  building 
stands,  and  to  all  tliat  is  most  disinterested  and  large-hearted  in  the  spirit  of 
some  good  man  who  may  have  caused  the  building  to  stand.  So  it  may  chance, 
that  upon  us  who  are  here  this  afternoon,  as  well  as  upon  this  splendid  librar}-,  shall 
fall  the  con.secrating  touch  of  this  good  deed  of  our  good  friend, — this  good  deed 
which  now  offers  this  grand  building  to  the  pursuit  and  the  .service  of  all  truth. 
For,  certainlj',  just  that  is  what  a  liiirary  is  for,  particularly  a  university-  library  ; 
it  is  for  the  pursuit  and  the  service  of  all  trutli.  Tliis  building,  which  for  con- 
venience we  call  a  library-,  is  for  precisely  llie  same  ultimate  object,  pursued  up- 
on precisely  the  same  methods  though  with  different  materials,  as  are  those  sev- 
eral other  buildings  in  the  neighborhood  which  we  call  laboratories ;  and  perhaps 
the  true  relations  of  tilings  on  this  campus  would  be  more  clearly  indicated,  if, 
while  we  call  one  building  the  chemical  laboratory,  and  another  the  physical 
laboratory,  and  so  on,  we  were  to  call  tliis  building  by  so  queer  a  name  as  the 
documentary  laboratory. 

At  any  rate — and  this  is  liie  i)oinl  which  I  wish  especial!}-  to  reach — this 
building  will  miss  its  true  object,  in  so  far  as  it  ever  becomes  a  place  for  mere  in- 


(VVv'A'AV.A    /'.W/  AA'.S//)-  A/A'A'. /A'):  55 

tcllectiial  frivolity,  for  literary  (.-noisiii  and  Sflf-iiuhiljrcnce,  for  any  sort  of 
pedantry  or  scholastic  foppery,  or  for  such  witless  and  mechanic  reading  as  was 
meant  by  Scali^t^cr,  when  he  described  a  certain  Dutch  ])rofessor  of  his  time 
as  "  having  read  himself  into  ignorance."  Nay,  more,  this  building  will  miss  its 
true  object,  in  so  far  as  it  ever  becomes  a  place  for  the  partisan  spirit  in  research, 
or  for  the  sophistical  spirit  in  exposition  ;  for  anything,  in  short,  but  genuine  in- 
tellectual life  and  work  ;  for  auytiiing  but  honest  work,  and  thorough  work,  and 
work  which,  because  it  is  both  thorough  and  hduest  is  also  fruitful, — giving 
light  and  strength  to  the  worker  himself  and  to  many  another  who  may  be  like 
him  in  the  common  need  of  light  and  strength. 

.'\nd  as  for  us  of  the  Faculty,  who,  as  .seekers  after  truth,  and  as  teachers  of 
it  in  this  university,  exist  here  for  objects  which  make  this  library  seem  to  be 
our  great  and  magnificent  ally,  surel}-  it  is  a  deep  happiness  to  us  to  have  our 
part  in  the.se  simple  and  sincere  services  of  gratitude  and  of  gladness  which  have 
already  filled  this  occasion  to  the  ver}'  brim. 

And  now,  Mr.  President,  remembering  the  sharp  time  limit  which  vou  have 
imposed  upon  me,  I  may  be  jierniitted,  as  I  take  mv  seat,  to  convev  to  this  as- 
semblage a  special  message  of  congratulation  which  comes  to  us  from  a  far 
country — from  a  famous  lover  and  collector  of  books,  who  wrought  out  his  brave 
life-work  in  England  more  than  five  hundred  3'ears  ago.  His  name  was  Richard 
de  Bur}^,  Bishop  of  Durham,  and  Lord  High  Chancellor;  and  his  message  to  us 
this  afternoon  across  half  a  thousand  years  is  this : — "  The  glory  of  the  world 
would  perish  in  oblivion  if  God  had  not  provided  mortals  with  the  remedies  of 
books.  Towers  crumble  to  the  earth  ;  but  he  whose  book  lives  cannot  die.  And 
it  is  to  be  considered,  lastly,  what  convenience  of  teaching  is  in  books,  how  easilj-, 
how  secretly,  how  safely,  in  books  we  bear,  without  shame,  the  poverty  of  human 
ignorance.  These  are  masters  who  instruct  us  witliout  rod  and  cane,  without 
words  and  wrath,  and  for  no  clothes  or  money.  If  you  approach  them,  thev  are 
not  asleep  ;  if  you  question  them,  they  are  not  secret ;  if  you  go  astray,  they  do 
not  grumble  at  you;  they  know  not  how  to  laugh  if  you  are  ignorant.  O  books! 
ye  onl}'  are  liberal  and  free,  who  pay  tril)ute  to  all  who  ask  it,  and  set  at  liberty 
all  who  serve  3'ou  faithfully." 

Sureh-,  ladies  and  gentlemen,  that  old  English  prelate  and  scholar,  who,  far 
back  in  the  fourteenth  century,  founded  his  noble  library  at  Oxford,  and  put  up- 
on record  these  words  in  prai.se  of  the  benignity  and  the  prcciousness  of  books, 
was  the  very  man  to  rejoice  with  us  in  the  goodly  shelter  and  temple  for  books 
which  is  here  provided  by  a  man  of  a  benignant  s])irit  kindred  to  his  own. 


56  EXERCISES  A  T  THE  OPENING. 

At  the  close  of  Professor  Tyler's  Address  the  Doxolog}'  was  sung ;  after 
which  Professor  Charles  M.  Tyler  prouoiinced  the  Benediction,  and  the  audience 
dispersed,  to  devote  a  pleasant  hour  to  a  general  inspection  of  the  Library'  build- 
ing. 


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